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Income disparity and norms relating to intra-household financial organisation in the UK: A dimensional analysis

Author

Listed:
  • Sonnenberg, Stefanie J.
  • Burgoyne, Carole B.
  • Routh, David A.

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of income disparity on social norms regarding intra-household financial organisation. Results are reported from an experiment using hypothetical choice scenarios. Brief vignettes were used depicting hypothetical couples at the transition to marriage and to parenthood. Each participant (N=400) responded to two brief vignettes depicting one hypothetical couple about to get married and another approaching the birth of a first child. The relative income of the hypothetical partners was varied across vignettes. Respondents selected the form of financial organisation they considered ‘best’ for each couple from a list of six different money management systems (adapted from Pahl, 1989), provided a reason for their choice and indicated which partner (if either) should have greater access to personal spending money. Whilst the ‘joint pool’ was most frequently chosen as the best system of financial organisation, a series of correspondence analyses revealed significant associations between the income disparities depicted in the vignettes and the money management systems chosen. Analysis suggested that the normative dimensions underlying these choices related to notions of equality/disparity and (inter)dependence/autonomy. Income disparities were also associated with views on personal spending money in the transition to marriage. The findings and their broader implications are discussed with reference to gender and the potential explanatory role of income disparity in accounting for gender differences in access to household monetary resources.

Suggested Citation

  • Sonnenberg, Stefanie J. & Burgoyne, Carole B. & Routh, David A., 2011. "Income disparity and norms relating to intra-household financial organisation in the UK: A dimensional analysis," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 40(5), pages 573-582.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:soceco:v:40:y:2011:i:5:p:573-582
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socec.2011.04.014
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ashby, Katherine J. & Burgoyne, Carole. B., 2009. "The financial practices and perceptions behind separate systems of household financial management," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 38(3), pages 519-529, June.
    2. Ashby, Katherine J. & Burgoyne, Carole B., 2008. "Separate financial entities?: Beyond categories of money management," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 458-480, April.
    3. Nenadic, Oleg & Greenacre, Michael, 2007. "Correspondence Analysis in R, with Two- and Three-dimensional Graphics: The ca Package," Journal of Statistical Software, Foundation for Open Access Statistics, vol. 20(i03).
    4. Burns, Maree & Burgoyne, Carole & Clarke, Victoria, 2008. "Financial affairs? Money management in same-sex relationships," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 481-501, April.
    5. Sonnenberg, Stefanie J., 2008. "Household financial organisation and discursive practice: Managing money and identity," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 533-551, April.
    6. Pahl, Jan, 1995. "His money, her money: Recent research on financial organisation in marriage," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 361-376, September.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Money management; Social norms; Gender; Marriage;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D10 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - General
    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation

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