The Ethics of Tax Evasion: A Comparative Study of Taiwan and the USA

Abstract:     
The ethics of tax evasion has been discussed sporadically in the theological and philosophical literature for at least 500 years. Martin Crowe wrote a doctoral thesis that reviewed much of that literature in 1944. The debate revolved around about 15 issues. Over the centuries, three main views evolved on the topic. But the business ethics literature has paid scant attention to this issue, perhaps because of the belief that tax evasion is always unethical.

This paper reports the results of a survey of students in Taiwan and the USA. The arguments that have been made over the centuries to justify tax evasion were ranked to determine which arguments are strongest and which are weakest. Male scores were compared to female scores to determine whether the responses differed by gender.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 18

Keywords: ethics, tax evasion, Taiwan, USA, China, gender

JEL Classification: D6, H26, E62, J16, K34, K42, M14, M4, O53, O51

working papers series