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Cumulative Disadvantage: Effects of Early Career Childcare Issues on Faculty Research Travel

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Affilia: Journal of Women and Social Work

Published online on

Abstract

Female faculty may experience disproportionate caregiving-type responsibilities in the academy and at home. A web-based survey inquired about the impact of childcare responsibilities on research-related travel. A convenience sample of full-time faculty participated (n = 127). From the overwhelmingly female faculty respondents (81.3%), results show that childcare issues impact their ability to plan research travel, submit to professional conferences, and travel to give an invited talk. Faculty rank, discipline, and whether their partner was employed at the same university negatively impacted their ability to travel. Work/life travel policies may reduce barriers to travel, hence reducing a type of cumulative disadvantage.