Abstract

The paper is a translation of the talk delivered by Karl-Heinz Saurwein, Dr. phil., from University of Bonn at 33rd Congress of German Sociological Association. Author investigates a phenomenon of corruption and refutes forcefully an argument that corruption is characteristic of non-modern or transitional societies and is determined by the properties of culture or mentality. On the contrary, author argues that corruption is a condition of the modern society’s existence. In doing so author criticizes various sociological theories