Should fines depend on income? A questionnaire study on values and institutions

K.G.M. Bosmans, L. Esposito*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

How do we make sense of the cross-country heterogeneity in value judgments emerging from international surveys? Our study suggests that the answer needs to go beyond the adaptation of values to existing institutions and should tap into deeper beliefs. In our case, Finnish respondents do support their country's system of income-dependent fines more strongly than respondents in countries using a fixed fine system. However, they also hold different beliefs on the relationship between income and well-being and hence on the burdens imposed by fining offenders at different income levels. A further illustration is provided in the context of income taxation.

Data source: Own data collection with surveys (available on request)
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)355-371
Number of pages17
JournalJournal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics
Volume171
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2015

Keywords

  • EQUITY
  • RESPONSIBILITY

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