Utility and Choice: An Empirical Study of Wife/Husband Decision Making

Results of an experiment manipulating the effects of cognitive conflict, role dominance, and persuasive messages on husband-wife decisions show that couples tend to choose options that are equitable and centered in their negotiation set, a tendency that is prevalent over choice occasions and bargaining conditions. Two mechanisms that support equity--static cooperation and dynamic shifts in individual utility function--are interpreted in light of these findings and those of other researchers. Copyright 1989 by the University of Chicago.

[1]  W. Qualls.  Household Decision Behavior: The Impact of Husbands' and Wives' Sex Role Orientation , 1987 .

[2]  Donald R. Lehmann,et al.  Models of Cooperative Group Decision-Making and Relative Influence: An Experimental Investigation of Family Purchase Decisions , 1987 .

[3]  Stephen J. Hoch,et al.  An Anchoring and Adjustment Model of Spousal Predictions , 1986 .

[4]  Louis W. Stern,et al.  Assessing the Predictive Accuracy of Two Utility-Based Theories in a Marketing Channel Negotiation Context , 1986 .

[5]  Scott A. Neslin,et al.  Nash's Theory of Cooperative Games as a Predictor of the Outcomes of Buyer-Seller Negotiations: An Experiment in Media Purchasing , 1983 .

[6]  Rosann L. Spiro.  Persuasion in Family Decision-Making , 1983 .

[7]  C. Whan Park,et al.  Joint decisions in home purchasing : A muddling-through process , 1982 .

[8]  D. Curry,et al.  When disagreement facilitates performance in judgment tasks: Effects of different forms of cognitive conflict, information environments, and human information processing characteristics , 1982 .

[9]  David J. Curry,et al.  Some Effects of Differing Information Processing Strategies on Husband-Wife Joint Decisions , 1979 .

[10]  J. Scanzoni.  Changing Sex Roles and Emerging Directions in Family Decision Making , 1977 .

[11]  R. A. Cosier,et al.  Cognitive conflict and goal conflict effects on task performance , 1977 .

[12]  F. K. Shuptrine,et al.  Dimensions of Marital Roles in Consumer Decision Making: Revisited , 1976 .

[13]  Weber Je,et al.  Joint Home Purchasing Decisions by Husbands and Wives , 1975 .

[14]  H. L. Davis,et al.  Perception of Marital Roles in Decision Processes , 1974 .

[15]  H. Raiffa,et al.  Games and Decisions. , 1960 .

[16]  E. Brunswik.  Perception and the Representative Design of Psychological Experiments , 1957 .

[17]  C. M. Schaninger,et al.  The Influence of Sex Roles on Family Decision Processes and Outcomes , 1983 .

[18]  D. Hempel,et al.  Issues Concerning Family Decision Making and Financial Services , 1980 .