MSGID: 1:317/3 645486c1   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Married couples who merge finances may be happier, stay together longer   
      
      
     Date:   
         May 4, 2023   
     Source:   
         Indiana University   
     Summary:   
         The Beatles famously sang, 'Money can't buy me love,' but married   
         couples who manage their finances together may love each other   
         longer, according to new research.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   The Beatles famously sang, "Money can't buy me love," but married couples   
   who manage their finances together may love each other longer, according   
   to research from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business.   
      
   Prior research suggests a correlation that couples who merge finances   
   tend to be happier than those who do not. But this is the first research   
   to show a causal relationship -- that married couples who have joint   
   bank accounts not only have better relationships, but they fight less   
   over money and feel better about how household finances are handled.   
      
   "When we surveyed people of varying relationship lengths, those who   
   had merged accounts reported higher levels of communality within their   
   marriage compared to people with separate accounts, or even those who   
   partially merged their finances," said Jenny Olson, assistant professor   
   of marketing at Kelley. "They frequently told us they felt more like they   
   were 'in this together.'  "This is the best evidence that we have to   
   date for a question that shapes couples' futures; and the fact that we   
   observe these meaningful shifts over two years, I think it's a pretty   
   powerful testament to the benefits of merging. On average, merging   
   should warrant a conversation with your partner, given the effects that   
   we're seeing here."  The findings appear in the article "Common Cents:   
   Bank Account Structure and Couples' Relationship Dynamics," which will   
   appear in the Journal of Consumer Research.   
      
   Olson and her co-authors recruited 230 couples, who were either engaged   
   or newly married at the time, and followed them over two years as   
   they began their married lives together. Everyone began the study with   
   separate accounts and consented to potentially changing their financial   
   arrangements. This was the first marriage for everyone involved in   
   the study.   
      
   Some couples were then randomly assigned to keep their separate bank   
   accounts, and others were told to open a joint bank account instead. A   
   third group was allowed to make the decision on their own.   
      
   Couples who were told to open joint bank accounts reported substantially   
   higher relationship quality two years later than those who maintained   
   separate accounts, Olson said, adding that merging promotes greater   
   financial goal alignment and transparency, and a communal understanding   
   of marriage.   
      
   "A communal relationship is one where partners respond to each other's   
   needs because there's a need. 'I want to help you because you need it. I'm   
   not keeping track,'" she said. "There's a 'we' perspective, which we   
   theorized would be related to a joint bank account."  Olson said that   
   couples with separate accounts viewed financial decision-making as more   
   of an exchange.   
      
   "It's 'I help you because you're going to help me later,'" she   
   said. "They're prepaying for later favors, and that's tit-for-tat, which   
   we see a bit more with separate accounts. It's 'I've got the Netflix   
   bill and you pay the doctor.' ... They're not working together like those   
   with joint accounts -- who have the same pool of money -- and that's more   
   common in business-type relationships."  With separate accounts, those in   
   a marriage potentially may think it is easier to leave the relationship,   
   Olson said. Twenty percent of participating couples did not finish the   
   study, including a significant percentage of those who separated after not   
   merging bank accounts. They found no gender differences in the results.   
      
   The mean age of participants was 28 years old. Three quarters were white,   
   and 12 percent were Black. Thirty-six percent had a bachelor's degree   
   and a median household income of $50,000. Couples had known each other,   
   on average, about five years and had been romantically involved for an   
   average of three years.   
      
   Ten percent had children.   
      
   Other study authors are Scott I. Rick, associate professor of marketing   
   at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan; Deborah   
   A. Small, the Adrian C. Israel Professor of Marketing at the Yale   
   School of Management; and Eli J. Finkel, professor of management and   
   organizations at the Kellogg School of Management and a professor of   
   psychology at Northwestern.   
      
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Mind_&_Brain   
                   # Relationships # Consumer_Behavior # Social_Psychology   
                   # Psychology # Child_Psychology # K-12_Education #   
                   Educational_Psychology # Child_Development   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Love o Platonic_love o Narcissism o Happiness o Emotion o   
             Maternal_bond o Neurology o Double_blind   
      
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   Story Source: Materials provided by Indiana_University. Note: Content   
   may be edited for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Jenny G Olson, Scott I Rick, Deborah A Small, Eli J Finkel. Common   
      Cents:   
         Bank Account Structure and Couples' Relationship Dynamics. Journal   
         of Consumer Research, 2023; DOI: 10.1093/jcr/ucad020   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/05/230504111937.htm   
      
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