Gender Inequalitiesin the 21st Century
Within Household Inequalities:
Couple Finances
26-27 March 2009
Togetherness and Autonomy in
Low/Moderate Income Couples
Fran Bennett (University of Oxford)
and Sirin Sung (Queens University Belfast)
Introduction
• GeNet project 5: www.genet.ac.uk
• “Within Household Inequalities
and Public Policy”
• Not mixed methods project, but multi-method, with joint working throughout
• Presentations draw on all elements: analysis of qualitative and quantitative data and policy simulation
The family is a key site of distribution (of resources, time and labour), but is often a ‘black box’ which is not investigated and within which equality is assumed
Aims of project: • To explore alternative approaches to understanding the
behavioural and distributional impact of policy change which take account of gender inequalities in power and influence within the household
• To use such approaches to analyse the effects of actual and potential changes in fiscal, social security and associated labour market policies
Outline of workshop
• ‘Gendering’ togetherness and financial autonomy in low/moderate income couples
• The pursuit of ‘collective’ household interests may differentially limit individuals’ current and/or future autonomy
• Factors influencing entitlements to household resources can result in unequal financial autonomy for men and women
• Influence of tax/benefits system on these inequalities
Outline of this presentation
• Qualitative research: method and sample
• Understanding of (financial) autonomy: economic independence and agency
• Challenges to emphasis on autonomy
• Drivers to togetherness in these couples
• Exploration of aspects of financial autonomy from gendered perspective
• Reflections, issues and future plans
Method and sample
• Semi-structured, separate interviews with members of 30 couples (almost all married)
• Time-limited sample from BHPS/ECHP (booster), interviewed in 2006
• Male/female couples, mostly both members of working age, have had child/ren at some time
• In England, Wales, Scotland (not N Ireland) • Low/moderate income – largely on means-tested
benefits/tax credits now and/or in past
Financial autonomy
• Autonomy: ability to determine life
• Financial autonomy defined as economic independence and/or agency with money:
- lack of dependence on/control by partner
- agency: decisions/actions related to household income + personal projects
• Data based on what interviewees said
• Focus on gender perspective
Togetherness
• Challenges to emphasis on autonomy
• Strong loyalty to mutuality/family unit
• Drivers to togetherness are strong:- low/moderate income (make £ stretch)- children as joint project- couples have stayed together
• ‘All in one pot’, ‘no yours and mine’, ‘team’
• (Sonnenberg: ‘all in one pot’ figurative?)
Economic independence
• Making a contribution: link with family survival more likely for men, self-esteem more likely for women:‘Money wise my wages is very important to me, I need to be bringing in something to contribute. It’s not necessary, we could live on his wage if we wanted to, but I need to work to contribute to bring in a little bit in doing something. It is emotionally very important to me.’
(case 11, female)
• Money in your own right: likely to be less imp-ortant for men, or seen as antithetical to sharing / an issue for women (more aware of tensions)
• Men/women: view of independence differs‘You can spend on what you like, if you need something you can buy what you like.’ (case 22, male)
‘To me it’s quite important, yes, I think you need to be ... have a little bit of independence in whatever you do.’ (case 27, female)
• Privacy: more women had individual accounts; but some men saw this choice as selfishness if applied to themselves
Agency: access to household income
• Women’s management of joint pool of household income as compensation?
• Agency in relation to household money management: women may take/hand over
• Joint account access may be problematic
• (Degree of) autonomy in gendered spending areas: ‘I’m bills, she’s food’
• ‘Not having to ask’ important for women
Agency: income for personal projects
• On low incomes, little to spare anyway• Most did not have to justify personal
spending• Women’s spending on family as personal? • Concern for others/connectedness as
expression of autonomy/agency• More women only spend own incomes • For some women, maintenance of
autonomy at price of living standard
Reflections
• Togetherness subscribed to by most
• But more unitary than gender equal?
• Men more likely to see little to disturb togetherness and/or autonomy as threat
• Women managed togetherness? but often also had aspirations for autonomy/agency
• But more difficult in low income families (joint assessment and private childrearing)
Issues and future plans
• Focus so far on ‘gendering’ togetherness and (financial) autonomy – men/women
• One partner’s autonomy limiting other’s? - link to inequality (including some women giving men pocket money, keeping their debit cards, buying their clothes etc.)
• Link perceptions with demographic info
• Togetherness/autonomy couple typology?