Thinking about (small) corruption in some Sub-Saharan African countries: the contribution of the comprehensive approach

The notion of corruption, which is the subject of study in various scientific disciplines, today makes a significant difference in academic compartmentalization. This contribution highlights the epistemological challenge involved in moving from the normative approach to corruption to the comprehensive approach based on representations of actors. Particular emphasis is placed on the African continent, which has become since the second half of the twentieth century a full-scale laboratory for studies on corruption. Despite the differences between these approaches as presented in the second part, and before proposing in conclusion a way to articulate them through the theory of normative pluralism, the first part of this contribution returns to what should be considered as the hard core of the notion of corruption, characteristic of corrupt practices regardless of the disciplinary approach addressed.