Tax Compliance Tested by Tax Justice and Tax Morality: A Literature Review

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to present a meta-analytic review of the literature on the key factors of tax justice and their impact on tax morale and tax compliance, highlighting the complexity of individual, institutional, and contextual factors that shape equity perceptions and taxpayer behavior. Drawing on a rigorous statistical synthesis of findings from multiple quantitative studies, this meta-analytic review identifies consistent effect patterns, assesses the relative importance of various determinants, and examines their variation across different settings. The results show that tax justice is perceived to be greater when institutions are efficient, transparent, and low in corruption, when public spending is considered fair, and when citizens participate in budgetary decision-making. Higher tax morale is associated with modernized institutions, increased trust in public authorities, and enhanced civic participation. Furthermore, sociocultural norms and values—such as culture, religion, and social norms—play a crucial role: tax morale increases when compliance is a socially valued norm and tax evasion is socially disapproved, while it declines in contexts marked by low social trust and high perceived levels of widespread tax evasion. This analysis underscores the importance of adopting an integrated, evidence-based approach to strengthen tax justice and compliance across diverse institutional and cultural contexts.

Classification JEL : H20, H26, K34

Paper type : Theoretical Research