Advisor(s)

Geoffrey Silvera

Committee Member(s)

Amy Landry
Christy Lemak
Nancy Borkowski

Document Type

Dissertation

Date of Award

6-1-2026

Degree Name

Doctor of Science in Administration Health Services (DSc)

School

School of Health Professions

Department

Administration/Health Services

Abstract

Physician-scientists sustain careers within one of the most structurally demanding environments in academic medicine, balancing expectations across research, clinical care, teaching, and service during life stages often characterized by intensified personal responsibilities. Although concerns about the stability of the physician-scientist workforce have persisted for decades, less empirical attention has focused on how work-life role conflict shapes career outcomes within this population. This study examines the relationship between work-life role conflict and career success among physician-scientists in academic medical centers. Guided by role theory and boundary theory, this cross-sectional, national study surveyed physician-scientists who served as principal investigators on National Institutes of Health K08 or K23 career development awards between fiscal years 2010 and 2024. Career success was conceptualized as a multidimensional construct encompassing research productivity, perceived career advancement, and career satisfaction. Multivariable regression models with robust standard errors were estimated to assess associations between work-life role conflict and career outcomes, as well as the moderating influence of boundary management strategies and macroenvironmental factors. Work-life role conflict was significantly associated with lower perceptions of career advancement but demonstrated inconsistent relationships with research productivity and career satisfaction. Research productivity was more strongly associated with workload intensity and caregiving structure than with reported role conflict. Boundary management strategies did not significantly moderate the relationship between work-life role conflict and career outcomes. Institutional support during COVID-19 buffered the relationship between work-life role conflict and research productivity, while macroenvironmental disruptions showed limited moderating effects. These findings contribute to a more realistic understanding of physician-scientist career success, emphasizing cumulative structural role demands as central features of academic career progression. By integrating role theory and boundary theory into physician-scientist workforce research and distinguishing between subjective and objective dimensions of career success, this study clarifies how cumulative structural demands shape professional trajectories. Sustaining a meaningful and successful physician-scientist career appears to depend less on individual boundary preferences and more on structural role expectations embedded within institutional and funding environments.

Keywords

Academic Medicine;Boundary Management;Career Success;Macroenvironment;Physician-Scientist;Work-Life Role Conflict

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