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Despite recent trends of progress, men predominantly control finances among heterosexual relationships in the U.S., especially within wealthier families, according to two separate studies. In fact, traditional male/female gender roles have been reinforced amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, one survey found.
One study — the UBS Global Wealth Management's latest Own Your Worth report — looked at more than 1,800 high-net-worth investors in the U.S. The other survey, put together by analytics company Hearts & Wallets, looked at a broader swath of society polling nearly 5,500 households across the socioeconomic spectrum and pulling millions of census household economic data points across 8 years.
Among the rich, UBS found that nearly half of women, 49%, defer to their male spouses to make financial decisions, and millennial women are more likely than previous generations to do so.
"With the important focus on gender equality, it's surprising that more women — particularly younger women — don't participate equally in decisions that will impact their future so profoundly," said Paula Polito, divisional vice chairwoman of UBS Global Wealth Management, in a release.
As the coronavirus pandemic upending lives and forces people to stay in their homes, traditional gender roles are actually becoming more entrenched, the survey found: Women took the lead on domestic duties, such as homeschooling (64%) and childcare (60%). Most men took the lead on yard work (58%) and managing finances (71%).
Among the broader swath of households, Hearts & Wallets found that women are markedly more involved in financial decisions than in the past. Nearly 9 in 10 women in relationships say they are involved in their household's "spending and investing" decisions, up from 4 in 10 in 2012.
Yet a perception gap exists: One third of female respondents say they are "primarily responsible" for their household "decisions about spending and investing," while only 5% of male respondents say their spouse or partner is "primarily responsible."
To account for what the study's authors call a "he said/she said discrepancy," the survey averaged the responses between men and women.
The result shows that nearly half of married/partnered households, or around 31 million households, share spending and investing decision-making. In about one third (34%) of coupled households, the man says he takes primary responsibility in contrast to 18% of households where women say they are primarily responsible.
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Dylan Jackson
Dylan Jackson writes about the business of law and race. He can be reached at [email protected] or 305-347-6677. On Twitter @DylanBJackson
