Analyzing the Challenges of Administrative Integrity: A Thematic Analysis of the Supreme Leader’s Statements within the Governance System of the Islamic Republic of Iran

Extended Abstract
 
Introduction and Objectives: More than four decades after the Islamic Revolution of Iran, and despite the formulation of numerous upstream documents, general policies, strategic statements, and repeated recommendations in the field of administrative integrity, evidence suggests that structural, cultural, and behavioral problems continue to challenge Iran’s administrative system. In some respects, these problems have not only persisted but have intensified, generating concerns about the widening gap between the ideals articulated in the Supreme Leader’s statements and the administrative realities observed today.
This discrepancy is reflected not just in qualitative assessments or internal reports; it is also clearly substantiated by international quantitative indicators. The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), published annually by Transparency International, continues to present a concerning portrayal of administrative performance in Iran. This raises essential questions about why, despite sustained and emphatic calls from the Supreme Leader to strengthen administrative integrity, meaningful progress has not fully materialized.
With this context in mind, the present research addresses four major objectives:

Identifying and categorizing the main themes related to administrative integrity in the Supreme Leader’s statements over the past two decades.
Analyzing structural, cultural, and behavioral challenges to administrative integrity based on an in-depth thematic analysis of those statements.
Comparing the dimensions of administrative integrity emphasized in the Supreme Leader’s discourse with global perspectives, highlighting key areas of convergence and divergence.
Extracting policy-oriented and practical strategies suitable for Iran’s administrative system, grounded in indigenous principles and the thematic findings of the study.

The ultimate aim is to present a conceptual model rooted in the values, knowledge foundations, and governance philosophy of the Islamic Republic of Iran—offering a strategic and actionable framework for policymakers and managers seeking to reinforce administrative integrity across the national system.
Method: This applied research utilizes a qualitative methodology with an inductive thematic analysis approach. Following the six-phase algorithm of Braun and Clarke (2006), the study systematically engaged with all relevant written and oral statements of the Supreme Leader—including speeches, decrees, strategic messages, and general policies—from 2001 to 2024.
The first stage involved comprehensive data collection: documents were gathered from official and authenticated sources, and textual segments relevant to administrative integrity, corruption prevention, managerial ethics, structural reforms, public accountability, and cultural transformation were extracted. The texts were read line by line; all meaningful units were coded inductively, meaning that no predetermined categories or hypotheses shaped the coding process.
In the second phase, initial codes were compared internally and across the dataset to ensure conceptual coherence. Through multiple iterations, themes were refined, merged, or separated depending on their explanatory power and distinctiveness. Each organizing and overarching theme was then described in detail, and its significance for strengthening administrative integrity in the Islamic Republic of Iran was explicated.
Finally, the findings were presented as a thematic network, consisting of basic themes, organizing themes, and one overarching theme. The analysis was supported by evidence-based tables and figures, and direct excerpts from the Supreme Leader’s statements were incorporated to enhance the credibility and authenticity of the interpretations. The research ultimately produced a proposed conceptual model illustrating pathways for promoting administrative integrity in Iran.
Results: The text-context analysis of the Supreme Leader’s statements from 2001 to 2024 yielded a rich dataset reflecting strategic, value-based, and holistic views of administrative integrity. The thematic analysis revealed four major organizing themes:

Transparent and people-centered governance
An effective control and accountability system
Strengthening cultural and moral capital
Structural justice and efficiency

These themes correspond closely with the three well-known dimensions of administrative integrity—structural, cultural, and behavioral. For instance:

Transparent and people-centered governance and structural justice and efficiency relate directly to the structural dimension, emphasizing meritocracy, process transparency, organizational restructuring, citizen participation, and fairness in administrative behavior.
The control and accountability system spans both structural (formal oversight mechanisms) and behavioral (individual responsibility and ethical conduct) dimensions.
Strengthening cultural and moral capital reflects the cultural dimension, highlighting work ethics, trustworthiness, public service motivation, and the moral-spiritual foundations of administrative behavior.

A notable finding is that the Supreme Leader’s discourse does not treat administrative integrity as merely the absence of corruption. Instead, it frames integrity as a positive, proactive, value-driven system requiring alignment between individual ethics, organizational culture, and structural transparency. This perspective enriches existing international theories by adding deeper moral, spiritual, and identity-based layers specific to the Iranian Islamic context.
Discussion and Conclusion: The study demonstrates that administrative integrity in the Islamic Republic of Iran is a holistic and multidimensional system, grounded in the active interplay among structural reforms, cultural transformation, and behavioral ethics. Based on the thematic analysis of the Supreme Leader’s statements, administrative integrity is built upon four interdependent pillars:

Transparent, people-centered governance
Effective control and accountability mechanisms
Cultural-moral capital
Structural justice and organizational efficiency

The findings highlight that structural reforms—no matter how extensive—will remain incomplete and unsustainable unless they are supported by moral-spiritual capital, deep-rooted cultural change, and a transformation in managerial attitudes and professional behaviors. Therefore, strategies for administrative reform must be reflected not only in official documents or regulations but also in the daily practices, institutional commitments, and ethical dispositions of managers and employees at all levels.
The conceptual model developed in this research emphasizes:

Strengthening human foundations of the administrative system
Leveraging Islamic-Iranian knowledge and values
Expanding transparency and accountability structures
Integrating genuine justice into human resource policies and organizational systems

This integrated, indigenous framework provides practical pathways for decision-makers seeking to enhance administrative integrity. Beyond offering theoretical insights, it provides a basis for large-scale implementation and evaluation within Iran’s administrative system—delivering concrete responses to the study’s central research questions.
Acknowledgment: The authors express their sincere appreciation to all professors and experts who contributed their insights to this research.
 
Conflict of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest in the conduct of this study.