The rise of research in behavioral psychology applied to public policy analysis has led to the identification of numerous social factors that influence tax compliance. However, understanding the psychological mechanisms governing taxpayer behavior remains a recognized and essential issue for reducing economic inequalities, yet it is still relatively underexplored. Because tax compliance is empirically difficult to assess, measurement tools are limited, and the quality of motivations often being studied within a narrow theoretical framework, these factors have largely contributed to explaining this gap.

To address these shortcomings, by drawing on the foundations of self-determination theory, this study proposes the measurement scale of Motivation to Pay Income Tax. This work helps to understand how the satisfaction of psychological needs has the potential to influence tax compliance intentions and illustrates how autonomously internalized motivations lead to much higher compliance intentions than controlled motivations. By promoting the identification of the motivational mechanisms governing tax behavior, this study thus makes it possible to influence citizens’ tax compliance intentions by guiding how public policies should be designed, developed, and communicated to sustainably foster voluntary tax compliance.