IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/jconsa/v55y2021i3p821-846.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Religion and informational influence: Evidence from individual tax behavior in the U.S

Author

Listed:
  • Didem Kurt
  • Ahmet C. Kurt

Abstract

This article seeks to understand whether and how religion plays a role in people's information search and dissemination behavior in the domain of individual taxes. Survey data show that religious participants exhibit greater uncertainty about a tax filing decision than atheist participants, and Google search data reveal that the U.S. tax season is marked by a notably higher search interest in religious teachings on taxes. Interestingly, people's tendency to ask “why” questions about taxes and their online search interest in tax loss strategies are greater in states with higher religiosity. In parallel, users from highly versus less religious states include more interrogatives and fewer certainty words in their tax‐related tweets posted during the 2019 U.S. federal government shutdown. These findings collectively suggest that people's certitude about individual tax matters decreases with religiosity.

Suggested Citation

  • Didem Kurt & Ahmet C. Kurt, 2021. "Religion and informational influence: Evidence from individual tax behavior in the U.S," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(3), pages 821-846, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jconsa:v:55:y:2021:i:3:p:821-846
    DOI: 10.1111/joca.12377
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/joca.12377
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/joca.12377?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Elizabeth A. Minton & Kathryn A. Johnson & Maricarmen Vizcaino & Christopher Wharton, 2020. "Is it godly to waste food? How understanding consumers' religion can help reduce consumer food waste," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(4), pages 1246-1269, December.
    2. Guiso, Luigi & Sapienza, Paola & Zingales, Luigi, 2003. "People's opium? Religion and economic attitudes," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(1), pages 225-282, January.
    3. Reckers, Philip M.J. & Sanders, Debra L. & Roark, Stephen J., 1994. "The Influence of Ethical Attitudes on Taxpayer Compliance," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association, vol. 47(4), pages 825-36, December.
    4. Reckers, Philip M.J. & Sanders, Debra L. & Roark, Stephen J., 1994. "The Influence of Ethical Attitudes on Taxpayer Compliance," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 47(4), pages 825-836, December.
    5. Chuah, Swee Hoon & Gächter, Simon & Hoffmann, Robert & Tan, Jonathan H. W., 2015. "Religion, Discrimination and Trust," IZA Discussion Papers 9616, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Evelyn L. Lehrer, 2004. "Religion as a Determinant of Economic and Demographic Behavior in the United States," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 30(4), pages 707-726, December.
    7. Stefano Pace, 2013. "Does Religion Affect the Materialism of Consumers? An Empirical Investigation of Buddhist Ethics and the Resistance of the Self," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 112(1), pages 25-46, January.
    8. Larcker, David F. & Rusticus, Tjomme O., 2010. "On the use of instrumental variables in accounting research," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(3), pages 186-205, April.
    9. Sood, James & Nasu, Yukio, 1995. "Religiosity and nationality : An exploratory study of their effect on consumer behavior in Japan and the United States," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 34(1), pages 1-9, September.
    10. Dills, Angela K. & Hernández-Julián, Rey, 2014. "Religiosity and state welfare," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 37-51.
    11. Adhikari, Binay Kumar & Agrawal, Anup, 2016. "Does local religiosity matter for bank risk-taking?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 272-293.
    12. Bottan, Nicolas L. & Perez-Truglia, Ricardo, 2015. "Losing my religion: The effects of religious scandals on religious participation and charitable giving," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 106-119.
    13. Roland Bénabou & Davide Ticchi & Andrea Vindigni, 2015. "Religion and Innovation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 105(5), pages 346-351, May.
    14. Nilton Porto & J. Michael Collins, 2017. "The Role of Refund Expectations in Savings: Evidence from Volunteer Income Tax Preparation Programs in the United States," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(1), pages 183-199, March.
    15. Torgler, Benno, 2006. "The importance of faith: Tax morale and religiosity," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 61(1), pages 81-109, September.
    16. Kanagaretnam, Kiridaran & Lobo, Gerald J. & Wang, Chong & Whalen, Dennis J., 2015. "Religiosity and risk-taking in international banking," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 7(C), pages 42-59.
    17. Minton, Elizabeth A. & Johnson, Kathryn A. & Liu, Richie L., 2019. "Religiosity and special food consumption: The explanatory effects of moral priorities," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 442-454.
    18. J. Michael Collins & Mia Nafziger, 2019. "Evaluating Financial Capability Services Provided in a Workforce Development Program," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(4), pages 1775-1796, December.
    19. Ozlem Sandikci, 2021. "Religion and Everyday Consumption Ethics: A Moral Economy Approach," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 168(2), pages 277-293, January.
    20. Samer Sarofim & Elizabeth Minton & Amabel Hunting & Darrell E. Bartholomew & Saman Zehra & William Montford & Frank Cabano & Pallab Paul, 2020. "Religion's influence on the financial well‐being of consumers: A conceptual framework and research agenda," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(3), pages 1028-1061, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. James Okrah & Alexander N. Nepp, 2023. "The Impact of Religious Traditions and Education Levels on Innovation Activity in Countries with Different Income Levels," Journal of Applied Economic Research, Graduate School of Economics and Management, Ural Federal University, vol. 22(2), pages 216-241.
    2. Gebhard Kirchgässner, 2011. "Tax Morale, Tax Evasion and the Shadow Economy," Chapters, in: Friedrich Schneider (ed.), Handbook on the Shadow Economy, chapter 10, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    3. Gianandrea Lanzara & Sara Lazzaroni & Paolo Masella & Mara P. Squicciarini, 2023. "Do Bishops Matter for Politics? Evidence From Italy," Working Papers wp1179, Dipartimento Scienze Economiche, Universita' di Bologna.
    4. Friedrich Schneider & Katharina Linsbauer & Friedrich Heinemann, 2015. "Religion and the Shadow Economy," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 68(1), pages 111-141, February.
    5. Alex Annan Abakah, 2020. "Local religious beliefs and municipal bond market outcomes," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 49(2), pages 447-471, June.
    6. Ooi, Chai-Aun & Hooy, Chee-Wooi, 2022. "Muslim CEOs, risk-taking and firm performance," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    7. Contreras, Harold & Korczak, Adriana & Korczak, Piotr, 2023. "Religion and insider trading profits," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    8. Wang, Jimin & Wang, Cong, 2021. "Can religions explain cross country differences in innovative activities?," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    9. Mathieu Gomes & Sylvain Marsat & Jonathan Peillex & Guillaume Pijourlet, 2023. "Does religiosity influence corporate greenwashing behavior?," Papers 2312.14515, arXiv.org.
    10. Chantziaras, Antonios & Dedoulis, Emmanouil & Grougiou, Vassiliki & Leventis, Stergios, 2020. "The impact of religiosity and corruption on CSR reporting: The case of U.S. banks," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 362-374.
    11. Hohyun Kim & Kyoung T. Kim & Seung H. Han, 2021. "Religious differences and households' investment decisions," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 44(4), pages 753-788, December.
    12. Fábio Pereira Silva & Reinaldo Guerreiro & Eduardo Flores, 2019. "Voluntary versus enforced tax compliance: the slippery slope framework in the Brazilian context," International Review of Economics, Springer;Happiness Economics and Interpersonal Relations (HEIRS), vol. 66(2), pages 147-180, June.
    13. Brahmana, Rayenda Khresna & You, Hui Wei, 2022. "Do Muslim CEOs and Muslim stakeholders prefer Islamic debt financing?," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    14. Janine Höhener & Christoph A. Schaltegger, 2012. "Religionsökonomie: eine Übersicht," CREMA Working Paper Series 2012-08, Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts (CREMA).
    15. Lars P. Feld & Bruno S. Frey, 2004. "Illegal, Immoral, Fattening or What?: How Deterrence and Responsive Regulation Shape Tax Morale," Marburg Working Papers on Economics 200426, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Department of Economics (Volkswirtschaftliche Abteilung).
    16. Pour, Eilnaz Kashefi & Uddin, Moshfique & Murinde, Victor & Amini, Shima, 2023. "CEO power, bank risk-taking and national culture: International evidence," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    17. Hungerman, Daniel & Rinz, Kevin & Weninger, Tim & Yoon, Chungeun, 2018. "Political campaigns and church contributions," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 155(C), pages 403-426.
    18. Samer Sarofim & Ahmed Tolba & Morris Kalliny, 2022. "The effect of religiosity on customer's response to service failure: Belief‐in‐fate, forgiveness, and emotional wellbeing," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(1), pages 465-486, March.
    19. Bentzen, Jeanet Sinding, 2021. "In crisis, we pray: Religiosity and the COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 192(C), pages 541-583.
    20. Grigoriadis, Theocharis, 2017. "Religion, administration & public goods: Experimental evidence from Russia," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 42-60.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:jconsa:v:55:y:2021:i:3:p:821-846. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0022-0078 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.