Multidimensional tax compliance attitude

Arbeitspapier

Citizen tax compliance significantly dictates governmental fiscal capacities. Recognizing this, understanding the determinants of tax compliance remains paramount. While existing literature frequently isolates and tests individual determinants such as audit likelihood, penalty structures, tax morale, and perceived fairness, an integrative, bottom-up approach addressing the spectrum of tax compliance attitudes has largely been overlooked. Addressing this gap, our study constructs a multidimensional Tax Compliance Attitude Inventory (TCAI) by harmonizing real taxpayer responses with established theoretical underpinnings. Through factor analysis, we delineate four pivotal factors: (i) morale, (ii) monetary benefit, (iii) deterrence, and (iv) authority. Notably, morale and deterrence emerge as consistent influencers of tax compliance. Embracing this multidimensionality, our cluster analysis demarcates two distinct taxpayer personas: (a) moralists and (b) rationalists. Our findings underscore that moralists consistently exhibit higher tax compliance than their rationalist counterparts. We further present a streamlined classification algorithm to operationalize the TCAI in new datasets, minimizing item count. This work serves as a seminal contribution, offering both academia and tax authorities a robust, quantitative tool to gauge tax compliance attitudes.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: Discussion Paper ; No. 2023/7

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models: Classification Methods; Cluster Analysis; Principal Components; Factor Models ; Survey Methods; Sampling Methods ; Micro-Based Behavioral Economics: Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making‡ ; Tax Evasion and Avoidance
• Subject: Behavioral economics ; compliance attitudes ; compliance behavior ; tax evasion ; heterogeneous individuals

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Bruns, Christoffer ; Fochmann, Martin ; Mohr, Peter N. C. ; Torgler, Benno
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Freie Universität Berlin, School of Business & Economics
• (where): Berlin
• (when): 2023

Further information

• DOI: doi:10.17169/refubium-40873
• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/279435
• URN: urn:nbn:de:kobv:188-refubium-41152-7
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET