Abstract
Female representation in STEM fields is often explained by the leaky pipeline metaphor, and previous work has shown that the arrival of children is one of the main causes. Thus, understanding how the arrival of children can impact the careers of scientists in the field of myrmecology could provide insight into how to promote a better policy to support women in the sciences and reduce gender disparity. Therefore, we aimed to 1) understand myrmecologist parents and identify the challenges they face, and 2) compare academic productivity between parents and the control groups (researchers without children). Our results indicate that even though myrmecologist parents work less at home, they maintain productivity in activities that are part of the regular academic research routine (such as publishing manuscripts, submitting grant proposals, advising mentees, and teaching classes). However, even after five years of their children’s arrival, activities such as field trips, public speaking and conference attendence are still affected. This is the first study about parenting in the field of myrmecology, and our findings can help funding agencies and institutions promote the best policies, workplace flexibility, and inclusivity to support parents in science, especially women.
Highlights
Female representation in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields is reduced and this is often explained by the leaky pipeline metaphor, where at each subsequent stage of academia there is further reduction or absence of female researchers occupying the highest level of academia, resembling a leak in a pipeline (Blickenstaff, 2005; Goulden et al, 2011; Shen et al, 2018; Ysseldyk et al, 2019)
In order to gather data on how the arrival of children can impact the career of scientists within the field of myrmecology, we developed an online survey that was released and answered in several myrmecological research groups
The script used for the form was built through a line of questioning that involved: 1) Getting to know the researcher and whether or not they have children; 2) Country where the children were born; 3) Academic stage of parents when children were born; 4) Family context when the children arrived; 5) If there was a period of leave such as paid maternity/paternity leave; 6) Support given by a supervisor and the institution; and 7) Impact on academic career
Summary
Technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields is reduced and this is often explained by the leaky pipeline metaphor, where at each subsequent stage of academia there is further reduction or absence of female researchers occupying the highest level of academia, resembling a leak in a pipeline (Blickenstaff, 2005; Goulden et al, 2011; Shen et al, 2018; Ysseldyk et al, 2019). The arrival of children is one of the main causes of disparity between men and women during career progression (Ginther & Kahn, 2009; Ecklund & Lincoln, 2011; Goulden et al, 2011; Adamo, 2013; Silva & Ribeiro, 2014; Walker, 2018; Machado et al, 2019; Swann, 2019; Ysseldyk et al, 2019). Even in the 21st century, women are still considered more responsible for domestic tasks and childcare (Preston, 2004; Beltrame & Donelli, 2012; Cech & Blair-Loy, 2019; Ysseldyk et al, 2019), even when they have a professional career and are responsible for financially supporting the household. A more even division of childcare among all family members, as with other household tasks, may alleviate this burden disproportionately experienced by women
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