Rebecca G. Casimbon, a 2018 alumna of the University of Guam’s Master of Public Administration program, presented the research paper on corruption that she co-authored at the International Conference on Business, Economics, & Information Technology held in March in Osaka, Japan. Photo courtesy of the University of Guam

A research product of the Regional Center for Public Policy (RCPP) at the University of Guam on factors relating to corruption in the U.S. was selected for publication in “Asia Pacific Business & Economics Research Perspectives.” The publication is a peer-reviewed journal of Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, the second largest international university in Japan, and publishes less than 20% of papers submitted.

“The paper is a testament to how our programs at the School of Business & Public Administration can produce excellent, relevant, and impactful research output,” said Maria Claret M. Ruane, a professor of economics at UOG and a research contributor at RCPP who co-authored the paper.

The paper, “Factors that explain corruption in the United States of America: A regression analysis,” was a collaboration among Ruane, 2014 Master of Public Administration (MPA) alumnus John E. Ruane; 2018 MPA alumna and 2016 Truman Scholar Rebecca G. Casimbon; and John J. Rivera, chairman of SBPA’s MPA and Professional Master of Business Administration programs and director of the RCPP.

The study sought to identify what causes corruption in the U.S. Using Department of Justice data on the Federal Public Corruption Convictions Rate over a 10-year period, the study found that factors that decrease corruption in the U.S. include higher economic growth, a lower incidence of poverty, and more available resources allocated toward law enforcement. The complete research paper can be viewed here.

This is the second MPA work that has been accepted for publication in a double-blind, peer-reviewed journal in the last few years. The last one was by MPA alumnus Daniel Brown with his 2016 work on “Familiarity and knowledge of the U.S. Constitution: A survey of Guam’s residents.”