Project Crossover

In section two of a 2002 amendment to the Undergraduate Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology Education Improvement Act, congress stated “A workforce that is highly trained in science…is crucial to generating the innovation that drives economic growth…” (Committee on Science, 2002). Given the growth in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers and the exodus of aging and highly skilled workers from these fields as projected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2005), fulfilling this order is likely to be challenging, with nearly 2.5 million STEM job openings forecast by 2014.

This study focuses on the experiences that scientists have during and after graduate school and beyond in order to identify factors that may add difficulty to obtaining and maintaining a career in science. Specifically, the interaction between family life and professional life for scientists is analyzed for conflicts between the two. Of particular interest is how this interaction influences the choices that scientists face regarding their careers. Because these issues are frequently cited in regard to the participation of women in science (Curtin, J., Blake, G., and Cassagnau, C., 1997; Davis, K., 1999; Monhardt, R., Tillotson, J., and Veronesi, P., 1999; Sears, A., 2003; Sonnert, G. and Holton, G., 1995), and given the increasing proportion of women in the STEM workforce (Figure 1), gender is given great consideration in this study.

Women earning STEM degrees

Figure 1. Science and engineering degrees earned by women. Data from the National Center for Educational Statistics, published online at http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/nsf04311/

Frequently, personal life issues are analyzed as an element of larger studies, but there are very few in-depth studies on personal life issues for scientists (Davis, 1999; Sears, 2003). Sears (2003) surveyed men and women in the field to determine if women were selecting themselves out of careers in math and science and to establish what may be behind this trend. One item of interest that came out of the study is the relatively disproportionate influence family-life and spouses have on women in making these choices. Davis (1999) interviewed female scientists about their decisions to pursue science as a career and potential influencing factors. All the women identified balancing a career in science with a personal life as a struggle. For many women, the point at which they are making these career choices coincides with the time at which they will be getting married and starting a family. Considering the impact personal/family life may have on women and therefore on the STEM workforce, more in-depth research on these effects is warranted.

The questions that will be addressed by this research include:

·      Do scientists in chemistry and physics report a conflict between work and family?
·      Do female scientists in these fields report a conflict between work and family at a greater frequency than men?
·      Do male and female scientists respond to this conflict differently? Specifically do female scientists make career choices based on family needs or desires more than men, essentially putting family ahead of their career?