Explaining Tax Non-Compliance from a Neo-Institutionalist Perspective: Some Lessons from a Public Opinion Survey in Turkey

Yıl 2020, Cilt: 28 Sayı: 43, 89 - 105, 25.01.2020

Aysegul Kayaoglu Colin C. Wıllıams

https://doi.org/10.17233/sosyoekonomi.2020.01.05

Cited By: 1

Öz

Conventionally, those engaging in tax non-compliance are explained as rational economic actors doing so when the benefits outweigh the costs. However, many individuals are still compliant to their tax regimes even when the pay-off from tax evasion is greater than the costs. The result is the emergence of a social actor perspective that gives primacy to tax morale when explaining tax non-compliance. Through the lens of neo-institutionalist theory, this approach argues that citizens behave in ways that reflect the normative, cultural-cognitive and regulatory rules of their institutional environments. To test this theory, we have analyzed a representative micro survey of 2,528 citizens in Turkey. The finding we have obtained in this paper using an econometric analysis is that high tax morale is significantly more likely when there is trust in government (the normative dimension), feeling of belonging to the nation (the cultural-cognitive dimension) and perceptions of the risk and severity of punishment (regulatory-instrumental dimension). It displays the importance of the tax morale approach when explaining and tackling tax non-compliance in Turkey.

Anahtar Kelimeler

South-East Europe, Informal Sector, Tax Morale, Tax Evasion, Institutional Theory, Turkey, South-East Europe

Neo-Kurumsal Perspektif ile Vergi Uyumsuzluğunu Anlamak: Türkiye’deki Bir Kamuoyu Araştırmasından Bulgular

Öz

Vergi uyumsuzluğu sergileyenler, genellikle bu davranışları getirileri götürülerinden ağır bastığında sergileyen rasyonel karar alıcılar olarak değerlendirilir. Buna karşın hala pek çok birey, vergi kaçırmanın kazancı maliyetinden büyük olmasına karşın kendilerine uygulanan vergi rejimlerine uyum göstermektedir. Sonuçta ise vergi uyumsuzluğunu açıklamada karşımıza vergi ahlakına öncelik veren bir sosyal aktör yaklaşımı çıkmaktadır. Konuya Neo-Kurumsal Teori penceresinden bakan bu yaklaşım, vatandaşların kurumsal çevrelerinin normatif, kültürel-bilişsel ve düzenleyici kurallarını yansıtır şekilde davrandığını öne sürmektedir. Bizler bu teoriyi test etmek için Türkiye’de 2,528 vatandaşla yapılmış temsili bir veriyi inceledik. Bu çalışmada ekonometrik bir analizle ulaştığımız bulgu, yüksek vergi ahlakının hükümete güven (normatif boyut), ulusal aidiyet hissi (kültürel-bilişsel boyut) ve risk ve cezanın ağırlığının algılandığı (düzenleyici-araçsal boyut) durumlarda anlamlı biçimde daha fazla olası yönde olduğudur. Bu da Türkiye’de vergi uyumsuzluğunu anlamak ve onunla mücadele etmek için vergi ahlakı yaklaşımının önemini göstermektedir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Kayıtdışı Piyasa, Vergi Ahlakı, Vergi Kaçırma, Kurumsal Teori, Türkiye, Güneydoğu Avrupa

Kaynakça

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