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Behavioral Economics and Tax Policy

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Author Info
William Congdon
Jeffrey R. Kling
Sendhil Mullainathan

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Abstract

Behavioral economics is changing our understanding of how economic policy operates, including tax policy. In this paper, we consider some implications of behavioral economics for tax policy, such as how it changes our understanding of the welfare consequences of taxation, the relative desirability of using the tax system as a platform for policy implementation, and the role of taxes as an element of policy design. We do so by reviewing the logic of specific features of tax policy in light of recent findings in areas such as tax salience, program take-up, and fiscal stimulus.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 15328.

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Date of creation: Sep 2009
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:15328

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
D03 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Behavioral Economics; Underlying Principles
H2 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
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  9. R oger E. A. F armer, 2009. "Animal Spirits: How Human Psychology Drives the Economy, and Why it Matters for Global Capitalism," The Economic Record, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 85(270), pages 357-358, 09. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  13. James Andreoni & John Miller, 2002. "Giving According to GARP: An Experimental Test of the Consistency of Preferences for Altruism," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 70(2), pages 737-753, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  1. Alan J. Auerbach & William G. Gale, 2009. "Activist Fiscal Policy to Stabilize Economic Activity," NBER Working Papers 15407, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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