Based on a study of 120 United States households, two methodological issues underlying research concerning family role and authority are examined: incongruency in husband-wife responses and coherence of authority patterns across a range of family decisions and tasks. Question ambiguity is a major source of incongruity in husband-wife response.…

Examined whether couples could accurately report on asymmetrical interaction patterns and whether particular patterns were associated with relationship distress. Undergraduate couples (N=55) completed a questionnaire describing interaction patterns. Agreement on pattern occurrence between couples was low but significantly greater than chance.…