Undertaking Empirical Tax Research: A Personal Experience

Abstract

Getting published is the name of the game but how to get started? Once up and running as an early career researcher you may seek to add another dimension to your research in the form of policy/jurisprudential analysis or empirical research. Both streams can take the legally trained scholar out of their comfort zone, arguably more so with empirical research involving surveys and statistical analysis. But there is an alternative form of empirical research utilising semi-structured interviews that can be both more flexible and insightful than the use of surveys. This paper canvasses the lessons for researchers drawn from the author's experience. In particular, it explores the semi-structured interview methodology focusing on issues associated with its implementation.