Evaluating corruption under the application of the SOCIO-economic development desgrowth index (Ð-index): the case of Guatemala

Getting a clear sense of the intensity and dynamics of corruption in a society or country is a critical platform for economic growth and development. This paper sets out to bring clarity to the study of corruption through an alternative approach. It examines and demonstrates how corruption can be evaluated by basically hinging it on the socio-economic development deaccumulation that any country can experience in different historical periods. The paper presents the socio-economic development desgrowth index (Ð-index), a new indicator with a complete set of mathematical tools that capture and calculate all the aspects that encompass corruption within a system or country. The paper successfully applied the (Ð-index) to X-ray the successive administrations of Guatemala from 1986 to year 2016 from where we convincingly observed the highs and lows in the corruption dynamics of Guatemala.