What do partners in couples spend their money on?

Abstract

In Chap. 10, we discussed the average spending patterns of different types of families. More specifically, we illustrated how the total expenditure on non-durable goods and services is divided between food, clothing or housing, for example. However, this distribution of the family’s total expenditure between various different goods and services does not reveal who these goods are intended for. Nonetheless, this distribution of consumption within the family is crucial for the individual well-being of the family members. The MEQIN dataset enables various conclusions to be drawn about this distribution for Belgium.