A holistic approach to examining the shadow economy

Authors

Keywords
shadow economy, holistic approach, research strategies for researching informal activities.

Summary
The article provides a brief retrospection of the methods which are applied within the framework of various paradigm approaches for studying and explaining shadow economy practices in Europe and worldwide. The author offers and explains an original methodology for researching shadow economy, based on her experience with one of the Bulgarian teams working in the sphere of measuring illegal economic activities. The article proves that due to the complex and controversial nature of informal economic activities examining them requires the application of a holistic method. For this reason a combined research strategy has been developed. It uses a unified definition of shadow economy and is realized through a system of related sociological surveys while the primary, raw information is obtained through qualitative and quantitative methods. The overall conclusion resulting from the applied research strategy is that the study of shadow economy with the help of sociological approaches is methodologically consistent and constructive – both with respect to obtaining knowledge and the possibilities for developing and correcting national policies.

JEL: E26
Pages: 17
Price: 2 Points

More titles

  • Anatomy of capital provision of investments

    Capital provision of investments requires serious financial revision of the balance sheet and the statement of income. In this respect, what is justified in this article is the need for structuring and designing a financial statement of the companies, which gives the major indicators, necessary for efficient financial provision and management of ...

  • Tax Sovereignty, State Budget, Fiscal Discipline (from an expert and cultural studies viewpoint)

    The three concepts in the title of this article are fundamental to finance in general and to public finances in particular. Throughout their three-century history they have undergone an evolution that can also be assessed as negative. The purpose of this article is three-fold: first, to present the classical definition of these three concepts, ...

  • State and problems of Bulgarian tourism products on the European market

    The article analyses the state of tourism products and services related to destination Bulgaria. This objective is achieved by applying situation analysis which reveals the market positions occupied by Bulgarian tourism products in Europe. The object of research is the nature and characteristics of offering while the subject is connected to the ...