The effect of family on the work lives of married physicians: what if the spouse is a physician, too?

Using data from a national survey of pediatricians, this study examines the effect of family life on the career choices of 1,782 married pediatricians, one-quarter of whom were in dual-physician marriages. We hypothesized that marriage to physicians would affect the work lives of male pediatricians much as parental responsibility does for female pediatricians. Logistic and multiple regression models confirmed that marriage to physicians and the presence of children affected career decisions of female pediatricians. In addition, male pediatricians in dual-physician marriages worked significantly fewer hours than other married male pediatricians, although responses to more subjective questions indicated that male pediatricians' perceptions of accommodation for the family may not match actual adjustments in work effort.