DDB Life Style Study® Discovers the Secret Lives of Americans Who Admittedly Cheat on Their Taxes
CHICAGO, April 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- In the midst of tax season and intensified political campaigning, news headlines are dominated by contentious and partisan issues surrounding income taxes—who is responsible for what percentage, whether the rates are justified, and if the tax code should be revisited. No matter how much most Americans complain about the burden of taxes, the majority of Americans claim honesty when it comes to filing their taxes. A recent DDB Life Style Study survey uncovered that while only 7% of Americans concede that they are likely to cheat on their taxes, the "tax cheats" share some disconcerting overall characteristics.
Demographically, the biggest difference between cheats and noncheats this year is still gender (http://www.ddb.com/newsline/tax_chart_short.jpg). Of admitted cheats, 72% are men. While 55% of tax cheats are under 45, somewhat surprisingly there are no other significant demographic differences between cheats and noncheats.
Based on the data from the DDB Life Style Study, the dishonesty that characterizes those who are tax cheats is, however, evident across many other chronic wanton behaviors (http://www.ddb.com/newsline/tax_chart_long.jpg), illustrating a skewed moral compass and an inflated sense of entitlement. For example, tax cheats are more likely than noncheats to keep the wrong change given to them by a cashier, take money from their child's piggy bank that they don't intend to return, and value their own happiness over that of others.
"The behavioral patterns of those who evade their taxes illustrate that tax cheats also have an inflated sense of entitlement compared to those who dutifully obey the law and pay their taxes in full," said Denise Kalfayan Delahorne, Group Strategy Director at DDB Chicago. "Tax cheats are more likely to consider themselves as 'better' and 'more attractive' than most people, and tend to value their own happiness ahead of others including their own children."
Tax cheats are more likely than their noncheating counterparts to engage in dishonest or unethical behavior such as:
For download:
Tax Cheat Infographic – Long Version:
http://www.ddb.com/newsline/tax_chart_long.jpg
http://www.ddb.com/newsline/tax_chart_long.pdf
Tax Cheat Infographic – Short Version:
http://www.ddb.com/newsline/tax_chart_short.jpg
http://www.ddb.com/newsline/tax_chart_short_new.pdf
| Tax Cheats |
Non Tax Cheats |
|
| Keep the wrong change given to them by a cashier |
53% |
23% |
| Feign liking somebody to be treated to dinner |
31% |
6% |
| Fabricate part of a resume |
41% |
6% |
| Work a job under the table while maintaining eligibility for unemployment benefits |
60% |
13% |
| Regift something rarely used and pass it off as new |
47% |
19% |
| Take credit for someone else's work to help get ahead |
24% |
6% |
| Find a decadent life of "sex, drugs, and rock-and-roll" appealing |
39% |
16% |
| Assert a superiority complex, claiming to be better than most people |
52% |
29% |
| Park in a handicapped space if no other places are closer |
26% |
6% |
| Seek out the rightful owner if they uncovered an unclaimed $100 bill |
21% |
38% |
| Declare they would put themselves ahead of their kids |
40% |
18% |
| Assert vanity claiming to be more attractive than most people |
47% |
27% |
| Value own happiness over that of others |
51% |
29% |
About DDB
DDB Worldwide Communications Group Inc (www.ddb.com) ranks among the top five consolidated advertising and marketing services global networks, according to Advertising Age. DDB emphasizes Social Creativity to grow the value and influence of brands around the world by creating ideas that people want to play with, participate in and pass along. The agency is consistently one of the most awarded at the Cannes Festival of Creativity and was recognized by The Gunn Report as one of the Top 3 Global Networks for 10 of the last 12 years. DDB was also recently named the Spikes Asia Network of the Year for the second consecutive year and the Eurobest Network of the Year for the third consecutive year. DDB Worldwide is part of Omnicom Group Inc. (OMC) and consists of more than 200 offices in over 90 countries.
Contact
Jeff Swystun: 212-415-2186
Elena Weinstein: 212-415-2191
SOURCE DDB Worldwide Communications Group Inc.
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