Citation

Gawronski VT, Levitt BS, Olson RS. Disasters 2023; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2023, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/disa.12585

PMID

37096657

Abstract

Disaster corruption is a vexing problem, damaging state legitimacy and exacerbating human suffering. Mexico has a history of both major disasters and persistently high levels of corruption. A 2017 earthquake provided an opportunity to study change over time in expectations for, and tolerance of, corruption in disaster relief. Twenty years earlier, Mexico City residents expected, on average, essentially 3 out of 10 hypothetical trucks with humanitarian assistance to be lost to corruption but expressed near zero tolerance for such corruption. By 2018-2019, Mexico City residents expected more than half of all relief, 6 out of 10 trucks, to be stolen - and could tolerate 3 out of 10 trucks being pilfered. Similar results were found at the national level. Mexicans appear to be giving up on the state. Addressing corruption in disaster risk reduction and humanitarian relief specifically might provide a template for improving public trust across other state institutions.

Language: en

Keywords

Mexico; disaster corruption; expectations and tolerance; humanitarian assistance; public opinion