The Science of Returning From Parental Leave: Why 'Everyone Moved On' Isn't the Real Problem

TEST_YOURSELF · How well do you know this science?

1. 01 In Cuddy, Fiske and Glick's research, what actually happens to perceptions of a professional woman when she becomes a mother?

   She is seen as both warmer and more competentShe is seen as warmer but notably less competentPerceptions of her stay exactly the sameShe is seen as colder and more competent

   Cuddy, Fiske and Glick found professional women traded perceived competence for perceived warmth on becoming mothers, and this competence drop directly predicted less interest in hiring or promoting them. Fathers gained warmth with no competence loss. source ↗

2. 02 In Correll, Benard and Paik's audit study of real employers, how did callback rates compare for equally qualified mothers and non-mothers?

   Mothers were called back at roughly half the rate of non-mothersMothers and non-mothers were called back at the same rateMothers were called back more often than non-mothersCallback rates depended only on years of experience, not parental status

   The matched audit study — sending equivalent applications with and without parenthood cues to real job openings — found mothers were called back at roughly half the rate of otherwise-identical non-mothers, while fathers were not penalized. source ↗

3. 03 What did Williams, Manvell and Bornstein's 'Opt Out or Pushed Out?' report find was actually driving women's exits from the workforce?

   A free, informed choice to prioritize family over careerWorkplace inflexibility and bias pushing women out across income levelsA decline in women's ambition after having childrenHigher salaries offered to stay-at-home parents

   The report challenged the popular 'opt out' narrative and found women across income levels were pushed out by workplace bias and rigid schedules rather than freely choosing to leave — a pattern the authors documented alongside a rise in maternal-wall discrimination lawsuits. source ↗

4. 04 According to Ladge, Clair and Greenberg's identity research, what actually happens to a professional's sense of self during the transition to parenthood?

   The professional identity is simply replaced by a maternal oneBoth identities must be actively reconstructed together, an ongoing processIdentity is unaffected by the transition to parenthoodThe process fully resolves before the employee returns to work

   Ladge, Clair and Greenberg introduced 'cross-domain identity transition' to describe how the professional self isn't swapped for a parental one but has to be actively rebuilt to hold both — a process that continues well past the official return date. source ↗

5. 05 According to Cahusac and Kanji's research on gendered organizational cultures, what is the 'ideal worker' norm that pushes mothers out?

   A worker who has flexible hours built around family needsA worker assumed to have no caregiving responsibilities, available for long hoursA worker whose ambition is measured by tenure aloneA worker who job-shares by default

   Cahusac and Kanji describe organizational cultures built around an unencumbered 'ideal worker' with no caregiving duties, available for long, inflexible hours — a norm that structurally pushes mothers out regardless of their ambition or skill. source ↗