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Norms, Enforcement, and Tax Evasion

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  • Anders Jensen

Abstract

This paper studies individual and social motives in tax evasion. We build a simple dynamic model that incorporates these motives and their interaction. The social motives underpin the role of norms and is the source of the dynamics that we study. Our empirical analysis exploits the adoption in 1990 of a poll tax to fund local government in the UK, which led to widespread evasion. The evidence is consistent with the model’s main predictions on the dynamics of evasion.

Suggested Citation

  • Anders Jensen, 2019. "Norms, Enforcement, and Tax Evasion," CID Working Papers 372, Center for International Development at Harvard University.
    • Handle: RePEc:cid:wpfacu:372
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Leonardo Bursztyn & Robert Jensen, 2017. "Social Image and Economic Behavior in the Field: Identifying, Understanding, and Shaping Social Pressure," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 9(1), pages 131-153, September.
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    6. Benno Torgler, 2007. "Tax Compliance and Tax Morale," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 4096.
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    8. Brian Erard & Jonathan Feinstein, 1994. "The Role of Moral Sentiments and Audit Perceptions in Tax Compliance," Carleton Industrial Organization Research Unit (CIORU) 94-03, Carleton University, Department of Economics.
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    Cited by:

    1. Leonardo Bursztyn & Ingar Haaland & Aakaash Rao & Christopher Roth, 2020. "Disguising Prejudice: Popular Rationales as Excuses for Intolerant Expression," Working Papers 2020-73, Becker Friedman Institute for Research In Economics.
    2. Acconcia, Antonio & D’Amato, Marcello & Martina, Riccardo & Ratto, Marisa, 2022. "The response of taxpayer compliance to the large shock of Italian unification," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    3. Ali, Merima & Fjeldstad, Odd-Helge, 2023. "Pre-colonial centralization and tax compliance norms in contemporary Uganda," Journal of Institutional Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 19(3), pages 379-400, June.
    4. Antinyan, Armenak & Asatryan, Zareh, 2019. "Nudging for tax compliance: A meta-analysis," ZEW Discussion Papers 19-055, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    5. Leonardo Bursztyn & Georgy Egorov & Ingar Haaland & Aakaash Rao & Christopher Roth, 2023. "Justifying Dissent," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 138(3), pages 1403-1451.
    6. Jan-Emmanuel De Neve & Clément Imbert & Johannes Spinnewijn & Teodora Tsankova & Maarten Luts, 2021. "How to Improve Tax Compliance? Evidence from Population-Wide Experiments in Belgium," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 129(5), pages 1425-1463.
    7. Debora Di Gioacchino & Domenico Fichera, 2022. "Tax evasion and social reputation: The role of influencers in a social network," Metroeconomica, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 73(4), pages 1048-1069, November.
    8. Arbex, Marcelo Aarestru & Mattos, Enlinson, 2020. "Tax preferences and optimal income taxation," Textos para discussão 538, FGV EESP - Escola de Economia de São Paulo, Fundação Getulio Vargas (Brazil).
    9. Kamm, Aaron & Koch, Christian & Nikiforakis, Nikos, 2021. "The ghost of institutions past: History as an obstacle to fighting tax evasion?," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 132(C).
    10. Arun Advani, 2022. "Who does and doesn't pay taxes?," Fiscal Studies, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 43(1), pages 5-22, March.
    11. Rodrigo Ceni & Gonzalo Salas, 2021. "Transfer program enforcement and children’s time allocation," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 19(4), pages 1099-1137, December.
    12. James E. Prieger, 2023. "Tax noncompliance: The role of tax morale in smokers' behavior," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 41(4), pages 653-673, October.
    13. Guy Meunier & Ingmar Schumacher, 2020. "The importance of considering optimal government policy when social norms matter for the private provision of public goods," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 22(3), pages 630-655, June.
    14. Emmanuelle Deglaire & Peter Daly & Fabrice Lec, 2021. "Exposure to tax dilemmas deteriorate individuals' self-declared tax morale," Economics of Governance, Springer, vol. 22(4), pages 363-397, December.
    15. Vossler, Christian A. & McKee, Michael & Bruner, David M., 2021. "Behavioral effects of tax withholding on tax compliance: Implications for information initiatives," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 301-319.
    16. Di Gioacchino, Debora & Fichera, Domenico, 2020. "Tax evasion and tax morale: A social network analysis," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    17. Blesse, Sebastian, 2021. "Are your tax problems an opportunity not to pay taxes? Evidence from a randomized survey experiment," ZEW Discussion Papers 21-040, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    18. Burgstaller, Lilith & Pfeil, Katharina, 2022. "You don't need an invoice, do you? An online experiment on collaborative tax evasion," Freiburg Discussion Papers on Constitutional Economics 22/6, Walter Eucken Institut e.V..
    19. Sinning, Mathias & Zhang, Yinjunjie, 2023. "Social norms or enforcement? A natural field experiment to improve traffic and parking fine compliance," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 210(C), pages 43-60.
    20. Chen, Shuo & Ding, Haoyuan & Lin, Shu & Ye, Haichun, 2022. "From past lies to current misconduct: The long shadow of China's Great Leap Forward," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    21. Devarajan,Shantayanan & Do,Quy-Toan, 2021. "Taxation, Accountability, and Cash Transfers : Breaking the Resource Curse," Policy Research Working Paper Series 9880, The World Bank.

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    Tax Evasion;

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