SIGNATURE WORK
CONFERENCE & EXHIBITION 2022

Corruption has become a widespread issue affecting many countries around the world. But why do low-income countries exhibit high levels of corruption? To answer this, the study aims to discover whether there is a relationship between corruption and ‘survivor mentality’. More specifically, it investigates whether a ‘survivor mentality’ stimulates engagement in corrupt behavior, affects one’s tolerance of such behavior, or impacts complacency of political activity. Due to the concurrent high levels of corruption and poverty, Nigeria was selected as the test country. The research included an online survey and semi-structured interviews done with Nigerian citizens living in Nigeria and abroad. After analyzing the data, the findings showed support for the paper’s hypothesis and indicated that:

1. there is a presence of ‘survivor mentality’ amongst Nigerian citizens with lower socioeconomic status,
2. and that this ‘survivor mentality’ does impact these citizens’ behavior on corruption.

Utilizing its data and findings, this paper puts forward a series of policy recommendations that aim to account for the presence of ‘survivor mentality’ and mitigate its impact on corruption in Nigeria. Despite focusing on one country, these proposals could also have implications for future anti-corruption policymaking in other low-income countries.