The Political Economy of Wasta Use and Abuse of Social Capital Networking [Paperback]

The term wasta stems from the Arabic root for middle or medium and describes the phenomenon of using connections to find job, government services or other favors to circumvent bureaucracy or bypass the system as a whole. The effects of wasta may be both positive or negative,  and is not a phenomenon that is particular  to the Arab or Muslim world,  but  also to many other cultures and regions of the world, with similar concepts popularly known as ubuntu, guanxi, harambee, naoberschop, or old boy network  used in African, Chinese and European  societies. 

By its very nature wasta is an area of grey or even black information, and,  like corruption to which it is most often associated, is hard to assess although country corruption perception indexes attempt to provide a quantifiable basis. In the final analysis such ratings are based on perceptions of corruption, and this perception may vary strongly depending on different societal structures and cultural modes, whether these are extended family systems, tribal, clans or more atomized societies where relationships are essentially transactional and rule based. In a western perspective where wasta may be considered as a form of corruption,  in other societies it may be perceived as something natural and not criminal, and  using one's wasta in tribal  societies  to help  clan members  is seen as a duty. The difference stems from the 'innocent ' use of wasta to make introductions, as opposedlÓ%