Resource Theory and the Distribution of Power between Husband and Wife: A Critical Evaluation

Due to its impact upon households’ consumption and expenditure patterns, power distribution within a family occupies a position of considerable importance in socio-economic and marketing research. An analysis of family power structure is capable of identifying the ‘target group/individual’ for any demand management (or marketing) policy. Further, one cannot ignore its importance for sociolOgists and anthropologists. This paper is limited to the study of power distribution between husband and wife in the family expenditure deCisions, with particular reference to the (in) validity of the resource theory of power distribution.’ To furnish better insights, the family power structure is analyzed in the context of certain socio-economic and cultural conditions e.g., age, income, education, family structure and ethnicity.