Maryna Brychko

Blekinge Institute of Technology, Karlskrona, Sweden

E-mail: maryna.brychko@bth.se

ORCID 0000-0002-9351-3280

Behavioral impulses and the transmission channels of their impact on macroeconomic stability

Hanna Yarovenko

Sumy State University, Sumy, Ukraine 

E-mail: h.yarovenko@biem.sumdu.edu.ua

ORCID 0000-0002-8760-6835

Samer Khouri

Technical University of Kosice, Slovak Republic

Email: samer.khouri@tuke.sk 

ORCID 0000-0003-3925-5177

Svitlana Bilan

Széchenyi István University, Gyor, Hungary

E-mail: s.bilan@csr-pub.eu

ORCID 0000-0001-9814-5459

Abstract. This study investigates the impact of behavioral impulses, specifically corruption perception and government effectiveness, on macroeconomic stability through fiscal transmission channels. A Vector Autoregression (VAR) model was used to analyze the impulse responses of key macroeconomic indicators, including tax revenues, state budget expenditures, and GDP per capita, to shocks in corruption perception and governance quality. The findings reveal that improvements in corruption perception initially boost tax revenues and economic growth but have diminishing effects over time, emphasizing the need for sustained policy enforcement. In contrast, government effectiveness has a delayed but more persistent impact on fiscal stability. The study challenges the greasing-the-wheels hypothesis, demonstrating that corruption weakens rather than facilitates economic efficiency. The study contributes to the literature on behavioral economics by demonstrating that public trust, shaped by corruption control and effective governance, plays a more pivotal role in maintaining macroeconomic stability than the previously acknowledged indicators of individual well-being.

Received: October, 2024

1st Revision: July, 2025

Accepted: September, 2025

DOI: 10.14254/2071-789X.2025/18-3/12

JEL Classification: E32, E71, M21

Keywords: behavioral impulses, macroeconomic stability, corruption, governmental effectiveness, trust, tax compliance, resilience