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Indeed. This coupled to the fact that female fertility is easier when younger (easier to become pregnant, fewer complications, better physical shape, not menopa

Indeed. This coupled to the fact that female fertility is easier when younger (easier to become pregnant, fewer complications, better physical shape, not menopaused, etc.), is IMHO the number one factor in a lot of male/female statistical discrepancies. My wife studied law, and we saw every single one of her female friends abandon or pause a successful career in order to have children. Just like academia, careers in law often tend to invade nights and weekends; and that's just not compatible with having children.

escapedmoose 3y ago
Fertility doesn’t have much to do with it after the kid is already born, and that’s when parental leave becomes relevant. The fact that women are still seen as the de facto parent responsible for childcare for all those nights and weekends is more a cultural thing than biological.
- lotsofpulp 3y ago
  In my experience, for at least the first year, there is no replacing women as the de facto parent responsible for childcare due to breastfeeding, and the child’s emotional needs. Well into the post breastfeeding toddler years, no one but my wife would have been able to satisfy the needs of my kids, and I feel like that is probably nature more than nurture. Mothers should be given at least a year of bonding leave, and fathers too just so the market does not reward men over women.
- rtkwe 3y ago
  Well there's one massive factor, at least until the kid is weaned, the mom is the easiest food supply for the kid. It's vastly easier than pump and bottle or even formula and bottle. Beyond that phase though it's true it's mostly societal, once the kid is eating real food there's little reason for a particular parent to be the primary care giver.
- michaelt 3y ago
  True, but fertility will still matter if they decide to have another. Decide you want four kids at age 20? No problem. Start at age 33, though? I hope you weren't planning to drink beer for the next decade.
- sgt 3y ago
  I can't explain it, but there's definitely a biological aspect too that matters a lot. The mother understands deeper things about the bond with the baby that us dads don't have a clue about.
cge 3y ago
Academia often involves a lot of time, but often in informal and flexible ways, with relatively little inflexible time (eg, lectures), and campuses that are not necessarily child-unfriendly. Unlike law, most likely, it isn't necessarily incompatible with having children if the university accommodates it. In some ways universities can even have particular advantages in accommodating children: they may well have entire departments of students being taught to educate and care for children (this can also include both educators and medical students), and spaces and resources that can be useful, especially for older children, like libraries. They might already manage things like housing, and can help with some worries, like trying to look forward to college tuition. Neither my parents nor most of the academic parents I knew growing up paused or abandoned their academic careers. We just spent a lot of time on university campuses. Departments were often fine with even infants being brought to offices, and classes their parents were teaching, as long as they weren't too disruptive. Quite a bit of work could be done at home, and home was often quite close to campus. While I was usually was with my mother, I think there was also easily accessible childcare. By the time I was an undergraduate, I knew the campus and library very well, and many faculty and staff knew me.

escapedmoose 3y ago

Fertility doesn’t have much to do with it after the kid is already born, and that’s when parental leave becomes relevant. The fact that women are still seen as the de facto parent responsible for childcare for all those nights and weekends is more a cultural thing than biological.

lotsofpulp 3y ago
In my experience, for at least the first year, there is no replacing women as the de facto parent responsible for childcare due to breastfeeding, and the child’s emotional needs. Well into the post breastfeeding toddler years, no one but my wife would have been able to satisfy the needs of my kids, and I feel like that is probably nature more than nurture. Mothers should be given at least a year of bonding leave, and fathers too just so the market does not reward men over women.
rtkwe 3y ago
Well there's one massive factor, at least until the kid is weaned, the mom is the easiest food supply for the kid. It's vastly easier than pump and bottle or even formula and bottle. Beyond that phase though it's true it's mostly societal, once the kid is eating real food there's little reason for a particular parent to be the primary care giver.
michaelt 3y ago
True, but fertility will still matter if they decide to have another. Decide you want four kids at age 20? No problem. Start at age 33, though? I hope you weren't planning to drink beer for the next decade.
sgt 3y ago
I can't explain it, but there's definitely a biological aspect too that matters a lot. The mother understands deeper things about the bond with the baby that us dads don't have a clue about.

cge 3y ago

Academia often involves a lot of time, but often in informal and flexible ways, with relatively little inflexible time (eg, lectures), and campuses that are not necessarily child-unfriendly. Unlike law, most likely, it isn't necessarily incompatible with having children if the university accommodates it. In some ways universities can even have particular advantages in accommodating children: they may well have entire departments of students being taught to educate and care for children (this can also include both educators and medical students), and spaces and resources that can be useful, especially for older children, like libraries. They might already manage things like housing, and can help with some worries, like trying to look forward to college tuition. Neither my parents nor most of the academic parents I knew growing up paused or abandoned their academic careers. We just spent a lot of time on university campuses. Departments were often fine with even infants being brought to offices, and classes their parents were teaching, as long as they weren't too disruptive. Quite a bit of work could be done at home, and home was often quite close to campus. While I was usually was with my mother, I think there was also easily accessible childcare. By the time I was an undergraduate, I knew the campus and library very well, and many faculty and staff knew me.