The New York Times-20080127-Openers the Count- -Money and Business-Financial Desk-

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Openers the Count; [Money and Business/Financial Desk]

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Withholding taxes from paychecks is far from an exact science. If it were exact, refund statistics from the I.R.S. would look a lot different. About three-quarters of the tax returns that the I.R.S. processed last year resulted in refunds. The average refund was more than $2,300.

You know what that means: the government had a lock on your hard-earned money, which you could have invested. (Given recent market volatility, though, it's possible that you'll be getting better results from the I.R.S. this year.)

But let's not ignore the very powerful psychology of the tax refund. What joy to receive that lump sum and to deposit it into your bank account. (Less than half of taxpayers opt to have their refunds deposited directly, perhaps attesting to the visceral thrill of getting that check in the mail.)

If you had instead received an extra $44 in your paycheck every week, would you have looked at it the same way? Although the money was always yours, the refund seems like a windfall.

[Illustration]CHART: BACK TO YOU: About three-quarters of the tax returns filed in 2007 resulted in refunds. (Source: Internal Revenue Service)