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Russian Attitudes Toward Paying Taxes ? Before, During, and After the Transition

Author

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  • James Alm
  • Jorge Martinez-Vazquez
  • Benno Torgler
Abstract
This paper examines citizens? attitudes toward paying taxes ? what is sometimes termed their ?tax morale?, or the intrinsic motivation to pay taxes ? focusing on the experience of individuals in the Russian Federation. A unique aspect of our analysis is our ability to study tax morale before (1991), during (1995), and shortly after (1999) the transition of the Russian economy from a centrally planned economy to one based on market reliance. Our empirical analysis uses data from the World Values Survey and the European Values Survey. The results show decay in tax morale in the first four years of the transition from 1991 to 1995, and a small recovery in 1999. These results are consistent with the relevance of social norms in tax compliance, where the widespread perception of tax evasion and of a corrupt and inefficient state led initially to a decline of tax morale. However, the results also suggest that the restoration of a higher level of trust in the state, after some progress in the transition to a market economy, positively influenced tax morale. Using disaggregated data for Russian regions, we also find significant regional differences in tax morale, reflecting the degree of trust different regions have toward Moscow?s institutions and policies.

Suggested Citation

  • James Alm & Jorge Martinez-Vazquez & Benno Torgler, 2005. "Russian Attitudes Toward Paying Taxes ? Before, During, and After the Transition," CREMA Working Paper Series 2005-27, Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts (CREMA).
    • Handle: RePEc:cra:wpaper:2005-27
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    Cited by:

    1. Colin C. Williams, 2023. "A Modern Guide to the Informal Economy," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 18668.
    2. Gächter, Simon & Renner, Elke, 2014. "Leaders as Role Models for the Voluntary Provision of Public Goods," IZA Discussion Papers 8580, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Jorge Martinz-Vazquez & Benno Torgler, 2005. "The Evolution of Tax Morale in Modern Spain," CREMA Working Paper Series 2005-33, Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts (CREMA).
    4. Torgler, Benno & Schneider, Friedrich, 2007. "Shadow Economy, Tax Morale, Governance and Institutional Quality: A Panel Analysis," Berkeley Olin Program in Law & Economics, Working Paper Series qt26s710z8, Berkeley Olin Program in Law & Economics.
    5. Wallin, Are & Zannakis, Mathias & Johansson, Lars-Olof & Molander, Sverker, 2013. "Influence of interventions and internal motivation on Swedish homeowners’ change of on-site sewage systems," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 27-40.
    6. James Alm, 2014. "Expanding the theory of tax compliance from individual to group motivations," Chapters, in: Francesco Forte & Ram Mudambi & Pietro Maria Navarra (ed.), A Handbook of Alternative Theories of Public Economics, chapter 12, pages 260-277, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    7. Torgler, Benno & García-Valiñas, María A. & Macintyre, Alison, 2011. "Participation in environmental organizations: an empirical analysis," Environment and Development Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 16(5), pages 591-620, October.
    8. Benno Torgler & Christoph A. Schaltegger, 2006. "Tax Morale: A Survey with a Special Focus on Switzerland," Swiss Journal of Economics and Statistics (SJES), Swiss Society of Economics and Statistics (SSES), vol. 142(III), pages 395-425, September.
    9. Maria Arezzo, 2014. "Social Capital and Undeclared Work: An Empirical Analysis in Italy from 1998 to 2008," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 118(2), pages 695-709, September.
    10. Aktaş Güzel, Sonnur & Özer, Gökhan & Özcan, Murat, 2019. "The effect of the variables of tax justice perception and trust in government on tax compliance: The case of Turkey," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 80-86.
    11. Brezeanu Petre & Dumiter Florin & Ghiur Rodica & Todor Silvia Paula, 2018. "Tax Compliance at National Level," Studia Universitatis „Vasile Goldis” Arad – Economics Series, Sciendo, vol. 28(2), pages 1-17, June.
    12. Jan Schnellenbach, 2006. "Tax Morale and the Taming of Leviathan," Constitutional Political Economy, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 117-132, June.
    13. Paleka Hana & Karanović Goran & Štambuk Ana, 2023. "The Direct and Moderating Effect of Sociodemographic Variables on Tax Compliance Behaviour," South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Sciendo, vol. 18(2), pages 34-48, December.
    14. Víctor Mauricio Castañeda-Rodríguez & Gaetano Lisi, 2024. "Can public efficiency increase tax morale? Evidence from 18 Latin American countries," Economics of Governance, Springer, vol. 25(2), pages 209-231, June.
    15. Benno Torgler & Maria A. Garcia-Valiñas, 2006. "Participation in Environmental Organizations: Political Interest and State Capacity," CREMA Working Paper Series 2006-14, Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts (CREMA).
    16. Alexander, Phyllis & Balavac-Orlic, Merima, 2022. "Tax morale: Framing and fairness," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 46(1).
    17. Gaetano Lisi, 2012. "Testing the slippery slope framework," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 32(2), pages 1369-1377.
    18. Nicole Robitaille & Julian House & Nina Mazar, 2021. "Effectiveness of Planning Prompts on Organizations’ Likelihood to File Their Overdue Taxes: A Multi‐Wave Field Experiment," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 67(7), pages 4327-4340, July.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    tax morale; tax compliance; social norms; transition countries;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H26 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Tax Evasion and Avoidance
    • K42 - Law and Economics - - Legal Procedure, the Legal System, and Illegal Behavior - - - Illegal Behavior and the Enforcement of Law
    • P35 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist Institutions and Their Transitions - - - Public Finance

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