A Statistical Study of the Relationship Between Corruption and Economic Growth in a Sample of Arab Countries

Abstract

This research paper aims to study the relationship between corruption and economic
growth in a sample of Arab countries, relying on some appropriate statistical methods such as
graphical shapes, principal components analysis method, and hierarchical classification, and with
the help of the statistical analysis program SPSS. The study showed that there is a strong inverse
relationship between the levels of growth achieved and the levels of corruption and crime. The
Arab countries that are least corrupt and have weak crime levels are the most developed countries,
while the countries in which corruption and crime are widespread at high levels are the least
developed countries. It was also shown that there is a strong correlation between the corruption
index and the crime index, and this confirms the existence of a relationship between administrative
corruption (governmental) and people’s corruption (crime). The Arab countries under study were
also classified into three (3) groups. The first group includes the countries (6 countries): UAE,
Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Kuwait. These are countries that have high levels in the
per capita output index, and in return, they have low levels in the corruption and crime indicators.
The second group includes countries (6): Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, and Jordan.
These are countries with average levels in all indicators (per capita output, corruption, crime). The
third group includes countries (6): Iraq, Sudan, Somalia, Libya, Syria, and Yemen. These are
countries that have low levels in the per capita output index, and in return, they have high levels in
the corruption and crime indicators.
Keywords: Corruption; Crime; Economic Growth; Statistical Analysis; Arab Countries