METHODOLOGY OF RESEARCHING THE ACTIVITIES OF THE STATE BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION IN THE FIELD OF ANTI-CORRUPTION

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to substantiate the system of methods for scientific research of the activities of the State Bureau of Investigation in the field of combating corruption, to clarify the methodological significance of each of the elements of this system and to develop an author’s methodological model for studying the specified issues. The article is devoted to the justification of the methodology for scientific research of the activities of the State Bureau of Investigation in the field of combating corruption. The system of methods of scientific knowledge is disclosed, the application of which allows for a comprehensive and objective analysis of the legal status, competence and practical activities of the State Bureau of Investigation as a subject of combating corruption offenses. The methodological significance of philosophical, general scientific and special legal research methods is characterized, in particular dialectical, historical-legal, formallegal, systemic-structural, functional, comparative-legal, statistical, documentary and sociological methods. Particular attention is paid to the methodology for analyzing the empirical base of the study, presented by the official reports of the State Bureau of Investigation for 2018, 2023 and 2024, as well as materials from specific law enforcement cases related to the identification of unfounded assets and the implementation of the Asset Recovery Strategy for 2023–2025. The feasibility of using an interdisciplinary approach to studying the research issues is substantiated, taking into account the combination of criminal procedural, administrative legal and civil procedural components in the activities of the State Bureau of Investigation. The criteria for the reliability and validity of the scientific results obtained in the research process are determined. An author’s methodological model for studying the activities of the State Bureau of Investigation in the field of combating corruption is formulated, which covers five consecutive stages of scientific knowledge. It has been established that dialectical, historical-legal, formal-legal, systemic-structural, functional, comparative-legal, statistical, documentary and sociological methods are of decisive methodological importance for the study of the researched issues, each of which performs an independent cognitive function and at the same time complements other methods within a holistic methodological system.