Are families a career liability?

This study examined the effects of marital and parental status on a number of work and psychological well‐being measures. Data were collected from 792 women graduates of a single Canadian school of business. Respondents tended to be in the early career stage. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated more effects of parental than marital status on these outcomes. In addition, the pattern of findings almost always showed that being married or having children had negative career consequences for these professional and managerial women.