What are some of the patterns you see? Are there commonalities or outliers at the top or bottom of the index? Where is the US located? In 1995, we were 15th.

If this is true, it might explain why some "undeveloped" countries have become first world economically, and others have continued to stagnate or decline. You may be interested in looking at Central American countries as these have been much in the news. If this reasoning is true, are we likely to be able to develop a stable free-market democracy in countries with high corruption?

Finally, looking at Adam Smith's virtues for society, what are some of the strengths in the US, what are some of the weaknesses, and if Smith is correct, should we be optimistic or have reason to be concerned? Does ethics in society affect overall prosperity and the proper functioning of a free market?

https://www.transparency.org/cpi2018

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/20/science/lost-wallet-what-to-do.html