A COMPARATIVE STUDY TO ASSESS THE FINANCIAL DECISIONMAKING AMONG WORKING WOMEN IN INDIA AND SINGAPORE

Abstract

Household financial decision-making refers to making decisions about household wealth accumulation. The present study focuses on the financial decision-making among urban working women in India and Singapore in their households to understand what factors impact the power women have to make decisions in their households. To conduct this research, a survey was sent out to 37 women from an upper socio-economic background. 18 of these women reside in India, while 19 reside in Singapore. The survey included multiple questions, covering multiple types of potential financial decisions in a household, and included a Likert scale (1-5) to measure, in numerical values, the power each gender held in the decision-making. The results revealed that if education levels were equal in a household, both genders would have an equal say in the financial decisions that are made. Additionally, they explained that women in the workforce have more of a role in financial decision-making in their households, compared to women who are homemakers. The results also showed millennial women tend to give more responsibility to their husbands, compared to other age groups for decision-making, Lastly, it also highlighted that stereotypical gender-based role in financial decision-making in households still exists to date. Although Singapore seems to have more gender equality in financial decision-making in households than in India, there is still a need to enhance women’s agency and role in both countries for this specific context.