Resumen:
Most research on corruption in educational settings has focused on a cross-national
and macro-level analysis; however, to our knowledge, few papers have sought to
explore individual perceptions that explain corruption in higher education. The present
research aimed to disentangle students’ predictors of corrupt intention in a Spanish
public university. A total of 933 undergraduate, postgraduate, and Ph.D. students
filled out an online survey measuring four corruption scenarios: favoritism, bribery,
fraud, and embezzlement. Path analysis (PA) revealed that justifiability, risk perception,
and perceived prevalence of corruption were significant factors in predicting corrupt
intention. Moreover, willingness to report a corrupt act was predicted by corrupt
intention, justifiability, and risk perception. Corrupt behavior is a complex phenomenon
explained not only by peers’ behavior, but also by their individual justifications and
perception of risk. Education is not free of corruption, and universities must address
this urgent problem in order to avoid future economic, societal, and ethical problems.