The Upper World

Abstract

Financial crime, as a major form of white collar crime, has been principally associated with Western, capitalist countries, especially the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia. The study of such crime by criminologists, sociologists, and other experts has been largely restricted to these countries, and not much has been done to examine white collar crime in the newly industrialized countries (NICs) (Bożyk, 2006). China, among other NICs, is undergoing rapid industrialization and marketization, which has driven corporations and individuals toward cost-benefit analysis rather than organizational and individual social responsibility (Bader, 2008; Lambert and Jiang, 2006). The incompatibility between market economy initiatives and China’s continuing authoritarian rule is a fundamental problem. The unique political economy in China has shaped white collar crime in the country (Cheng, 2004a; Zhang and Zhao, 2007).