Tax Professionals’ Role and Ethics During A Period of Economic Crisis in A Small European Country

Michail Pazarskis (), Athanasia Karakitsiou, Andreas Koutoupis and Despoina Sidiropoulou
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Athanasia Karakitsiou: International Hellenic University, Greece
Andreas Koutoupis: University of Thessaly, Greece
Despoina Sidiropoulou: International Hellenic University, Greece

Journal of Accounting and Management Information Systems, 2020, vol. 19, issue 4, 734-758

Abstract: Research Question: This paper analyses the role and ethics of tax professionals in the collection of public revenue from business activity during a period of economic crisis in Greece. Motivation - We attempt to analyse the respective influences of a corporate environment and personal beliefs on tax professionals’ ethics as well as the consequences of economic crisis. Idea: The paper employs a modified experimental questionnaire from Bobek & Radtke (2007) for the US. This questionnaire is adapted for Greece during a period of economic crisis. Data - Addressees of the questionnaire were tax professionals of two categories: certified public accountants and accountant/tax consultants, both of which are responsible for determining the amount of taxes owed to the Greek Independent Public Revenue Authority (IPRA). Tools - Results were reached by submitting the results of a questionnaire to a multiple-correspondence analysis based on the Burt matrix. As the size of the sample is rather small, in order to avoid any bias the study employs a resampling procedure based on the k fold validation method. Findings - The results of the survey showed that the main causes of ethical dilemmas are problems with clients such as pressure from clients, client-retention concerns and misunderstandings with clients. The major factor contributing to the resolution of an ethical dilemma is the experience of the tax professional. A significant percentage of respondents believed that their level of morality had increased during the period of economic crisis, making them more compliant with relevant tax rules. Contribution - This study contributes to business ethics and helps reinforce them, thereby contributing to the increase in the public revenues, which can help a economy to emerge faster from an economic crisis. Also, we recommend the targeting on in-house ethics training and explicitly including rewards and sanctions regarding ethical behavior in performance evaluation systems in tax professionals’ firms.

Keywords: tax professionals; ethics; public revenues; tax compliance; Greece (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: H20 M40 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ami:journl:v:19:y:2020:i:4:p:734-758

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