Doubling up, or sharing a home, is an increasingly common way that families make ends meet. Drawing on over 170 in-depth interviews with 60 parents, I ask how doubled-up household members understand and contest their economic relationships. I show that the success of intra-household economic exchange depends not only on the amounts exchanged, but also the shared meanings behind these exchanges. Given the lack of institutionalized expectations guiding doubled-up household relationships, household members draw on competing norms, framing the household as either a solidarity unit or a series of independent nuclear family units. Although disagreement over economic relationships is common, multigenerational households often benefit from more established norms to guide their relationships. Additionally, some households establish clear terms of exchange, either through negotiation or because support only flows one way. This study sheds new light on the economic and social dynamics of doubled-up households. Additionally, the findings reveal the challenges of relational work within incompletely institutionalized relationships.
Hope Harvey (Fri,) studied this question.