A Psychological Analysis of Corruption in Nigeria

Corruption will likely appear on everyone’s list of factors obstructing Nigeria’s path toward sustainable development; yet, rather than decrease, corruption has proliferated to all segments of Nigeria, making it the "common cold" of Nigeria’s social ills. Typical responses to corruption have involved the overthrow of whole regimes or removal of individual officials implicated in the incidences that have come to light. Unfortunately, these replacements often end up being more corrupt than their predecessors. However, a perusal of the literature has revealed a surprising dearth of psychological variables in the discussion of the mechanisms involved in corruption. In order for Nigeria to successfully combat corruption and pave way for sustainable development, the possible causes and proposed solutions have to be explored from the various facets that make up this complex phenomenon. This article attempts to fill that void by using Maslow’s concept of hierarchy of needs, and Bandura’s perspective of social learning theory to analyze the physical and psychological conditions in Nigeria today that tend to have predictable effects on behavior, including corruption. It is my argument that overlooking the psychological viewpoint is a major reason why current attempts at tackling corruption have failed. Introduction Corruption is one of the most dangerous social ills of any society. This is because corruption, like a deadly virus, attacks the vital structures that make for society’s progressive functioning, thus putting its very existence into serious peril. This is particularly true for developing countries in that limited but valuable funds and resources that are initially earmarked for industries, hospitals, schools, and other infrastructures are either outrightly embezzled, misappropriated, or otherwise severely depleted through kickbacks and over-invoicing by agents of government. Furthermore, corruption stifles businesses that are unwilling to engage in this nefarious activity; ironically, it also eventually destroys the companies that yield to this practice, thus halting or at least delaying considerably, the march toward economic progress and ultimately sustained development. Perhaps even more damaging than the foregoing is the fact that corrupt leaders tend to cling to power in the knowledge that their activities cannot withstand the scrutiny of an open government. This desperate desire for self-preservation ultimately results in very ruthless repression of individuals and groups that advocate for democracy and accountability.