The disclosure in the Anti-Corruption Plans : formal vs substantive attempts in the Italian Regional Governments

The current paper focuses on the disclosure divulged by Italian Regions in their Anticorruption Plans. It draws from the literature on the legitimacy theory to understand whether the information provided is driven by symbolic legitimacy purposes to pursue formal compliance or by substantive attempts to secure greater levels of accountability. To this aim, the study employs a meaning-oriented content analysis and a multiple correspondence analysis to assess the degree of thoroughness and the heterogeneity of the information, also identifying possible factors explaining any differences. The findings offer interesting implications for theory, practitioners, and policy makers. [Publisher's text].