‘The price is different depending on whether you want a receipt or not’: examining the purchasing of goods and services from the informal economy in South-East Europe

Main author: Littlewood, David
Other authors: Rodgers, Peter
Yang, Junhong
Format: Journal Article           
Online access: Click here to view record


id eprints-32621
recordtype eprints
institution SOAS, University of London
collection SOAS Research Online
language English
language_search English
description Research on the informal economy has largely focussed on supply-side issues, addressing questions like what motivates individuals to work in the informal economy and how can governments tackle this phenomenon. To date, much less attention has been given to demand-side aspects, examining issues around who purchases goods and services from the informal economy, why, and to what extent there are variations according to demographic, socio-economic and geographic dimensions. This paper addresses this imbalance by examining the purchasing of goods and services from the informal economy in South-East Europe. Firstly, this paper identifies the prevalence of such informal purchasing in South-East Europe as well as who undertakes such purchasing. Next, it examines the relative significance of cost factors, social factors and failures in the formal economy, in motivating such purchasing. Finally, it explores variability in the significance of these motivators based on individual-level factors, within and across three South-East European countries.
format Journal Article
author Littlewood, David
author_facet Littlewood, David
Rodgers, Peter
Yang, Junhong
authorStr Littlewood, David
author_letter Littlewood, David
author2 Rodgers, Peter
Yang, Junhong
author2Str Rodgers, Peter
Yang, Junhong
title ‘The price is different depending on whether you want a receipt or not’: examining the purchasing of goods and services from the informal economy in South-East Europe
publisher Taylor and Francis
publishDate 2018
url https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/32621/