Couples' gender role preferences and management of family food preferences.

OBJECTIVE To learn how couples stratified by gender role preference (GRP) manage food preferences. DESIGN One-time individual semistructured qualitative interview with each partner in a couple representing 1 of 3 GRP pairings. SETTINGS/PARTICIPANTS Volunteers were recruited using advertising and snowball sampling and met the criteria of both parents living at home, wife no older than 40 years, and at least one child under age 6 years and, if present, all others under age 18 years. Both partners in volunteer couples completed a 31-item GRP scale, and the scores of each partner were categorized as traditional (lowest 25% of possible scores), transitional (middle 50%), or egalitarian (top 25%). No traditional couples volunteered. A purposeful sample of 10 transitional and 10 egalitarian wives representing 20 couples was interviewed. VARIABLES MEASURED Each partner was asked how food preference patterns were established and how family member food preferences affect foods served at evening meals now. ANALYSIS Thematic content analysis, constant comparison, and consensus produced the final thematic analysis. RESULTS Transitional wives married to transitional husbands established a pattern of deference to the husband's preferences that could make alteration of food choices difficult. Egalitarian wives married to egalitarian husbands established a fairer pattern of balancing partner's food preferences. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS Nutrition education for transitional and egalitarian couples should use different approaches.