Combating Corruption in Croatia: From Expert Perceptions to Policy-Oriented Action Strategies and Back *

In this paper a comparative analysis of various perceptions of corruption in Croatia is presented. The investigation is based on the research results obtained within the FP6 project “ Crime as Culture” , started in 2006, which focused on the perception of corruption in seven European countries. The grounded theory method was used to organize and interpret data collected in interviews with experts from six target groups. The aim of this paper is to provide some policy- oriented insights based on a synthesis of the project findings. The paper is divided into four sections focusing on the major dimensions of combat against corruption: (1) research on corruption, (2) sanctioning corruption, (3) corruption prevention, and (4) increasing anti-corruption awareness. As our analyses suggest, the social embeddedness of corruption in Croatia is well reflected in the dominant expert perceptions of corruption. The observed heterogeneity and fragmentariness of the existing (and often competing) perceptions of corruption found in this study are potential obstacles to a systematic, well-coordinated, and efficacious anti-corruption strategy. (IN CROATIAN: U radu se predstavlja komparativna analiza razlicitih percepcija korupcije u Hrvatskoj. Rad se temelji na interpretaciji istraživackih rezultata prikupljenih u okviru FP6 projekta »Crime as Culture«, zapocetog 2006. godine i posvecenog analizi percepcije korupcije u sedam europskih zemalja. Za organizaciju i interpretaciju podataka dobivenih u intervjuima sa strucnjacima iz sest podrucja koristena je metodologija utemeljene teorije. Svrha rada jest određivanje nekih javnopolitickih uvida utemeljenih na sintezi nalaza projekta. Rad je podijeljen u cetiri cjeline koje opisuju temeljne dimenzije borbe protiv korupcije: (1) istraživanje korupcije, (2) sankcioniranje korupcije, (3) prevencija korupcije i (4) podizanje svijesti o korupciji. Kao sto analize pokazuju, drustvena uklopljenost korupcije u Hrvatskoj dobro se odražava u dominantnim strucnim percepcijama korupcije. U studiji primijecene heterogenost i fragmentarnost postojecih (i cesto konkurirajucih) percepcija korupcije moguce su prepreke za sustavnu, dobro usklađenu i uspjesnu strategiju borbe protiv korupcije.)