The interactions between academia and policymaking in the area of economic crime: a comparative exploration

This paper offers a first comparative study of the interactions between academic research and policymaking in the area of economic crime in six countries representative of different continents and legal systems: the United States of America, Brasil, the United Kingdom, South Africa, India and Australia. Through an analysis of various policy documents we will identify common problems as well as best practices. This should allow us to formulate recommendations for a better mutual integration and knowledge transfer between academia and policymakers. Our study can have significant theoretical and practical implications. From a theoretical perspective, this paper contributes to the study of evidence-based policy. Moreover, our findings can provide the groundwork for future research addressing other countries, other policy areas or specific aspects of the policymaking process. From a practical perspective, this study can contribute to raise public awareness of the interactions between academia and policy and promote further dialogue between relevant stakeholders. Hopefully, our analysis and recommendations can also help institutions from different countries assess and improve the effectiveness, including cost-effectiveness, of their anti-economic crime strategies and the relevant knowledge exchanges between the research community and policymakers.