This chapter first summarizes the history of ideas of corruption, contrasting two perspectives that have coexisted. In one, it is seen as a degradation of the social body, often within an organic view of society, while in the other, it is defined in terms of public office, for example, as the “abuse of entrusted power for private gain” which is the definition prevailing today. All definitions of corruption (as phenomenon) have some common ingredients, and in particular, they depend on a normative view of the polity. This chapter also introduces a conceptual framework that is used to interpret the country case studies of Russia, Brazil, and the United States. It is formed by the interaction of a “lower sub-system” with a “higher sub-system.”