Student Perceptions of Workplace Corruption and Its Effect on Their Academic Motivation

Corruption is a worldwide issue, and our understanding of it has been shaped by public policy at the expense of personal motivation. Therefore, a psychological standpoint is required to identify youth at risk of future exploitation. A total of 890 students (psychology, economics, law and education) participated in this study, and their motivation for being at university (AMS-C 28) and their perceptions of the effects of corruption on motivation (PoCM) were measured. Interestingly, students reported that their perception of corruption in the workplace affects their intrinsic motivation and subsequently, the amotivated group reported the highest willingness to use corruption in the future. The study proposes that the self-determination theory in conjunction with PoCM can potentially identify students at risk. We argue that intrinsic motivation, the form closest to the self-determined end of the SDT continuum, can protect students from the adverse effects of corruption.