When it comes to conflict within marriage, disputes over money almost always feature prominently alongside perennial flashpoints such as sharing the housework and dealing with demanding relatives. So what should be read into research that shows nearly half of all married people do not know how much their spouse earns?
Based on the findings of a retirement planning study by Fidelity Investments, a financial consultancy, one in 10 Americans could not guess their spouse’s real income even within $25,000 (Dh92,000). Part of this is being attributed to the more complicated nature of modern working life, where contract working is fast displacing the traditional model of having a salaried job.
But this in turn poses a different question: given the volatile nature of money as a source of marital conflict, does this lack of knowledge mean that ignorance really is (wedded) bliss? Or do all couples just find their own way of dealing with the issue?
