This is the dorsal task of the project and will permit the collection of nationally representative data on tax morale and its underlying causes at the regional (comparative analysis) and national (global) level. Most large cross-cultural studies (e.g., World Value Survey, European Value Survey) treat tax morale as a “black box”, neglecting the analysis of its underlying causes and thus failing to inform fiscal policy about possible interventions. This project has the purpose to understand the antecedents of tax morale and evaluate their predictive value to tax evasion prevention by contrasting tax morale results with official tax evasion data. With this task, we will be able to identify the most determinants variables that predict tax morale and analyse its associations with tax evasion behaviour, allowing the development of evidence-based policy guidelines.
We will develop a questionnaire to include the major variables identified in previous research as significant to understand and predict tax morale and tax evasion. No research to date has provided a combined analysis of all these variables. The data collection will be performed by a specialised organisation that will guarantee the national representativeness of the data. The questionnaire will include variables related to the individuals, Economy and social groups or society. Furthermore, it will collect data regarding sex, age, marital status, educational level, income and employment situation.