ABSTRACT
Status inequality has been the rule in family life in our society. A study carried out in Greece provides people with the opportunity to examine the nature and consequences of different types of asymmetries in a very different cultural context than the USA or England. It is the less-educated women and the women working in a lower level job who most often give an answer indicating a low or a lack of autonomy in spending the money they have earned. Completely independent management of the money earned by the husband and the wife is more frequent in the higher educational, occupational and income groups especially, when the husband earns more than the wife or when he has a superior occupational standing than his wife. All couples must communicate at the information-instrumental level about the everyday tasks and routines, if they are to function even at a minimal level.
