Abstract

This study examines attitudes toward the ethics of tax evasion in Brazil and Portugal using data from Wave 7 of the World Values Survey, which surveyed over 100,000 individuals across multiple countries. Participants rated the justifiability of cheating on taxes on a 10-point Likert scale (1 = never justifiable; 10 = always justifiable). The analysis compares overall mean scores and demographic breakdowns by gender, age, education level, confidence in government, and happiness. Results indicate strong opposition to tax evasion in both countries, with Portugal showing significantly stronger opposition (mean score: 2.04) compared to Brazil (mean score: 3.01). Gender was not a significant variable in either country, while age and education revealed fluctuating patterns, with older and more educated groups generally more opposed. Confidence in government and happiness showed limited significance, though opposition tended to decrease with lower happiness. The findings suggest waning Portuguese cultural influence on Brazilian attitudes, highlighting potential alignments with other Latin American perspectives. Implications for public finance policy and ethical frameworks are discussed, emphasizing the role of demographic factors in tax compliance.

Keywords

tax evasion, ethics, Brazil, Portugal, public finance, World Values Survey, tax compliance, demographic analysis, tax morale