The pledge to share one’s worldly goods might be in the wedding vows, but it is no longer a key part of marriage, according to new research by ISER’s Heather Laurie and Research Associate Man Yee Kan of Oxford University.
The study showed that fear of divorce and the rise of second marriages has led to more people keeping their money separate from their partner’s. The trend is likely to be of concern to equality campaigners, who believe that the pay gap – which sees women in the UK paid 16.4 per cent less than men – is extending inequality within the home, too.
Using data from the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS), the researchers found that between 1995 and 2005 both married and co-habiting people became much more financially independent, holding savings and investments in their own names rather than jointly.
Dr Laurie explained:
“There has been a definite drop in joint holdings. The whole issue of remarriage is a trigger for people keeping their finances separate.”
And she added:
“The increase in cohabitation could be part of it, too. Cohabiting couples are less likely to hold things jointly, even when you control for age and how long they have been together.”
The trend towards marrying later in life – the average age of first-time brides rose from 23.1 in 1961 to 30 in 2009 – has also been cited as a reason for the shift away from joint savings, because people have more time to acquire their own wealth.
The report looked at data from 12,000 people in 1995, 2000 and 2005. Despite this growing independence, the researchers found that women’s emotional well-being is boosted by their partner’s savings, even if they aren’t held jointly. Of women whose partners had savings, 60 per cent had higher levels of well-being than women whose partners had none. Men’s well-being was not found to be affected by their wife’s savings.
The research found that women are less likely than men to have investments: 38 per cent compared with 42 per cent. And where they do have money of their own, the amounts are, typically, significantly lower.
Read the research
Savings, investments, debts and psychological well-being in married and cohabiting couples