Resources and decision making

• Money Management

  Men don't always give women reliable and fair amounts of money. Graham found that over half the women in her study preferred benefits to their previous financial support from their husbands after they split up. It was more reliable and regular.
• Earner of the house


  The earner of the house have more of a say in decisions. Pahl and Vogler identify two types of control over income. Pooling and an allowance system.
• Pooling

  This is when both partners have joint access to income e.g. a joint bank account. Pahl and Vogler found pooling on the rise. A sample of 1,211 couples with their parents. Pooling had increased from 19% with the parents to 50% with current couples.
• Partial pooling

  This is when couples contribute some of their income to a joint account solely for joint expenses and keep the rest separate. In unmarried heterosexual couples partial pooling is more prevalent than pooling, especially when they are child free.
• Same-sex couples

  There is a higher degree of egalitarianism (equality) and more separation in the couples' finances.
• Pahl and Vogler

  Pooling money doesn't mean there is equality. We need to know who controls the money and whether each partner contributes equally. Vogler found cohabiting couples were less likely to pool there money - desire to maintain their independence. Yet cohabiting couples are more likely than married couples to share domestic tasks equally.
• Personal Life Perspective

  It focuses on the meanings couples give to who controls the money. The meanings that money may have in relationships can't be taken for granted. E.g. We may assume that one partner controlling the money is a sign of inequality in a relationship, for some couples it may not have this meaning.