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I came across this, this, this and this.

This professor at IIT is very well known for his books on physics in India. I can't find the exact link on Quora, but the answer said that he didn't marry because he loved his research too much.

I'm specifically asking if personal (family) life hinders or holds a person back from reaching one's full research potential.

Just a speculation - maybe a person could achieve a Nobel or likewise in his field if he could have spent more time on research than taking care or be there for his family. Maybe not.

I'm not asking strategies to balance work-life.

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scientific_explorer
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    I've never met anyone in academia or other research institution around the world having troubles balancing personal and professional lives. My friends in industry have much more trouble, instead. – Massimo Ortolano Oct 27 '15 at 21:50
  • Isn't industry just a 9-5 job? You go, do certain work, come back home - right? That is, unless you're doing something along the lines of research there too where you'd have to meet deadlines. – scientific_explorer Oct 27 '15 at 21:54
  • The situation is very different between male and female academics. Male academics often have wives to act as support staff, female faculty not only have to do family duties but also their academic ones. – RoboKaren Oct 27 '15 at 21:55
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    @RoboKaren that's not really academia-specific, though. – ff524 Oct 27 '15 at 21:56
  • @RoboKaren Is it possible to support your claim with something? – scientific_explorer Oct 27 '15 at 21:58
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    @vkv: No, industry it's not a 9-5 job, especially if you hold a high level position. I have friends in industry who work around the clock and that are sent around the globe with little notice to work in harsh environments 12-14 hours a day. And I'm talking of engineers or PhDs. – Massimo Ortolano Oct 27 '15 at 21:59
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    @MassimoOrtolano I would say there are lots of such people, both in and out of academia. – Kimball Oct 27 '15 at 22:04
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    The highest-voted answer to your first link gives a very good answer. Personally, I'm doing my PhD now and have two beautiful daughters. If anything, they help me focus when I'm at work, so I put in a solid 8 hours and then go home and play with them. My fellow PhD students without kids are much less efficient with their time at work. – semi-extrinsic Oct 27 '15 at 22:05
  • @RoboKaren, your comment about male versus female academics may be statistically accurate, all the more in the past, and perhaps more strongly so in some cultures, but it is not universal. – paul garrett Oct 27 '15 at 22:06
  • @RoboKaren: what you say is not easy to assess and can depend on the country and the age of the people considered. Most of the people I know in their forties and fifties, in and out of academia, are divorced, so there's no really "support staff", in either sense. Moreover, it can depend on the kind of support provided by the university (e.g. we have an internal kindergarten for the university employees). – Massimo Ortolano Oct 27 '15 at 22:14
  • This is why I added it as a comment and not an answer. – RoboKaren Oct 27 '15 at 22:20
  • In many countries, employers have a legal obligation to monitor the working hours and enforce that nobody works too much. As a result, most "industry" jobs are really 9-to-5 jobs, at least for those who are considered employees. In academia, people often work like freelancers even though they are technically employees, and nobody seems to care about their working hours. As a result, many people end up working more than people in comparable level jobs in the "industry". – Jouni Sirén Oct 27 '15 at 22:42
  • It's not clear to me what your actual question is. There's already a question asking for specific strategies for work-life balance, which you know (you linked to it.) Right now, this seems like a poll to me, which is off topic per the [help/dont-ask]. If it's not, please [edit] the post to clarify your specific, answerable question and I'll reopen. (Ping me with an @ comment if you edit it so I'll know.) – ff524 Oct 28 '15 at 07:18
  • @vkv Example you gave is a exception but not the norm. Yes Newton was not married but Einstein married twice. Stephen Hawking have also married 2 times (till now :) . I once met Nobel Prize winner "Eric Kandel" who also have written one of the great textbook in "Neuroscience". During his talk he rightfully mentioned role of his wife in his career and success and thanked her in public. Oh and in year 2014 the Nobel Prize was given to scientist couple. To Marry or Not to Marry is a personal choice AND not a formula for academic success. However 1 should choose a partner wisely :P – d.putto Oct 28 '15 at 10:20
  • http://phys.org/news/2014-10-couples-won-nobels.html – d.putto Oct 28 '15 at 10:20
  • @ff524 I've edited the question. I'm not asking for strategies. I'm rather asking how one impacts the other. – scientific_explorer Oct 28 '15 at 11:14
  • Everybody's personal life is different. There is no general answer to this question. – Nobody Oct 28 '15 at 11:51
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    As @scaaahu says, the answer is almost certainly "Yes" for some people and "no" for others. That's why I call it a "poll" - there isn't a right answer, just everybody describing what their own life is like, and that's off topic here. – ff524 Oct 28 '15 at 13:43

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