Changing the social norm of tax compliance by voting.

It is suggested that there is a social norm of tax compliance that affects individual reporting decisions and that can be affected by government institutions. Experimental methods are employed to test this hypothesis: an experimental design that captures the essential features of the fiscal and vo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Kyklos Vol. 52; no. 2; pp. 141 - 172
Main Authors: Alm, James, McClelland, Gary H., Schulze, William D.
Format: Article
Published: Wiley-Blackwell 1999
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Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
Description
Summary:It is suggested that there is a social norm of tax compliance that affects individual reporting decisions and that can be affected by government institutions. Experimental methods are employed to test this hypothesis: an experimental design that captures the essential features of the fiscal and voting system present in many countries is presented. Results are consistent with a central role for social norms in tax compliance behavior. However, results also suggest that the social norm of tax compliance can be affected by group communication.