The Politics of Parenting in Political Science

Gender inequality in academia persists despite cultural shifts and policy interventions, with parenthood widely identified as a key driver of gendered career disparities. Yet little is known about how parenting shapes career experiences across national and institutional contexts or how parental timing shapes academic trajectories. This article addresses these gaps using an original survey of 501 academics in politics departments in the United States and the United Kingdom. Moving beyond publication-based measures of productivity, we examine the multidimensional impact of parenting on academic careers. Our findings demonstrate that institutional support matters, shaping almost every aspect of an academic parent’s career overall. Gender differences, however, are less pronounced, while identifying as a primary caregiver is strongly associated with negative career experiences. The timing of parenthood also matters, as those who became parents during graduate school report fewer adverse effects. Despite weaker formal support structures, parents in the United States report less negative career impact than their counterparts in the United Kingdom. These results highlight the importance of caregiving roles, timing, and institutional and cultural context in shaping parents’ career trajectories within political science.