Impact of wife's employment on service expenditures

Abstract

Data from the 1986 Consumer Expenditure Survey were used to examine the relationship between wife's employment and spending on services that are expected to be sensitive to the value of time. Tobit regression analysis indicated that wife's employment status was influential in explaining expenditure on food away from home, child care and total services only. Other independent variables, such as income, education and age. were more influential in explaining expenditure than was wife's employment status.