Everyone has their own money - is this really a family? Yes, sociologists answer. It’s just that this is a new type of family, where both earn good money and they don’t have to add up their salaries to buy a washing machine. But so far there are not very many such families. The vast majority are forced to combine income to solve simple everyday problems

As a recent survey by the Public Opinion Foundation showed, more than 66 percent of families put all the money they earn into a “common pot.” What does this mean: the low incomes of Russians or the cult of family values? Sociologist Elena Vovk , who was involved in this study of FOM, told Ogonyok about this.

Most Russians prefer to maintain a common family budget. Can this be explained by the traditional and patriarchal family structure in Russia?

The average Russian family cannot be called either patriarchal or feminized. Rather, we still have the traditional model, when all earnings were added together. In such a family, all the chores of running a household fall on the shoulders of the woman, and therefore she controls the money for buying food, clothing, etc. And if you consider that most of the income goes to food, then it is quite natural that the husband gives his wife almost all your earnings.

That is, even for the middle class, food is the main source of expenses?

It depends what you mean by “middle class”. If we take Moscow families, where each member receives an income of thousands of dollars, then a significant part of their income goes to paying for the rent of a rented apartment. As for some long-term priorities, only those families whose income exceeds the average Russian level can afford them. Such people, as a rule, invest their savings in real estate, vacations, children's education and in providing quality medical services.

If family members do not share their earnings with each other, does this indicate mistrust or alienation?

Indeed, in some cases, when the family does not have a common budget, this may be a sign of tension within the family. However, these are isolated cases. Rather, the absence of a common budget in the family speaks more about the autonomy and independence of each spouse. It was the identification of a huge number of such families, where the spouses are in equal partnerships, that became the most unexpected result of our survey.

Examples may vary. Here is the most common case - spouses receive salaries on bank cards. It is simply inconvenient for them to withdraw money in order to put it somewhere at home. But the spouses do not forget that they have common goals and expenses - children, buying food and clothing, vacation...

At the same time, what is interesting is that the distribution of responsibilities follows the principle of simplicity - if it is easier for one of the spouses to make purchases in a store, then he takes on these expenses.

There is another category of families without a common budget. These are, as a rule, well-off people who simply do not see the need to pool their income for everyday life. It is clear that such families do not forget that they have common expenses - after all, if people do not have any common expenses at all, then it is difficult to call them a family.

Finally, quite a few respondents do not contribute to the common pot simply because they have nothing to contribute. These are usually either students or elderly people.

Are income from shares and mutual funds transferred to the general family budget? Or do people still perceive this as personal income?

Transactions on the stock market have not yet become part of the everyday life of Russians, and income from shares for the majority of respondents is more exotic than a traditional way of earning money. Therefore, more often than not, the owner of securities comes to the conclusion that he can dispose of these income at his own discretion.

Soviet stash in a new way?

The stash was, is and will be, because human nature does not change. It is difficult for a person to give all the money to his loved ones, no matter how much he loves them, he wants to keep something for himself. But there can no longer be any generally accepted model, and everything depends on how the family agrees.

One interesting fact from your study is that more than 47 percent of respondents believe that the main breadwinner should not have any privileges when deciding on any purchases...

What's surprising about this? In many families, responsibilities are distributed as follows: breadwinner and homemaker. The woman does not work, but she takes care of the house and children. In fact, he pays her money for taking care of his family. He gives money, she gives all her time.

Interviewed by Elena BAKHANOVA

SUMMER IS TIME FOR FAMILY SPENDING

Repair

The income of construction companies involved in renovations increases by 50% in the summer. Russians are cleaning up not only their apartments, but also their country houses. Experts say: women decide how much to spend on repairs

Tourism

Sales turnover of travel agencies increases by about 50% in the summer. Married couples usually know in advance where they want to go, and when in doubt, the woman has the final say

Climate systems and equipment

The profits of companies specializing in air conditioning increase by 80% during the hot season.

Bicycles

In summer, bicycle sales increase by 70%. As a rule, men come to buy two-wheeled vehicles, while when buying a bicycle for a child, the head of the family also has the final say

Banks

In the summer, the issuance of loans increases, primarily for urgent needs. According to experts, the summer demand for loans will increase by 12 - 15%.

Everything goes to the house