Introduction

The behaviour of families was neglected by economists until the 1950s (Becker 1981). Now, their growing awareness of family behaviour is hastening the incorporation of family life into the mainstream of economics. In turning their attention to the household or family, economists and economic demographers are analysing the underlying ways in which the rules of the market govern the consumption, production, and welfare of family members and the structure of the family itself. Family economics is now a respectable and growing field (Becker 1965).