Parenting takes a heavy toll on the careers of female academics in North America
Women more likely to report that caring for children has hurt their career than men
New light has been shed on the dilemma many women academics face: motherhood or an academic career. US researchers have found that mothers who are academics are significantly more likely than fathers to report that having to care for children has hurt their careers. On the other hand, they found that female academics are less likely than their male colleagues to have children and more likely to have fewer children.
Using data from a survey of almost 8000 academics in North America and publication data from the Web of Science, the team analysed how parenthood affected academic achievement, both objectively, such as citations and collaborations, and subjectively, such as self-reported research satisfaction and perceived recognition. The sample contained 57% women, 43% men and 0.4% non-binary.