Comparing the Living Standards of Husbands and Wives: In and Out of Marriage

This paper argues that analyzing the livings standards of husbands and wives within families is a critical challenge for researchers concerned with the valid measurement of family well-being. No major data sets provide information about significant aspects of individual family members’ living standards. The family remains a “black box” because it is treated as the natural unit of analysis. The paper defines living standards, reviews examples of inter- and intra- family examples, finds these efforts guilty of methodological sexism, describes a small scale study that needs replication, and notes the importance of housework in any measures of living standards. It concludes with suggestions for two major changes in data collection efforts.