Guardian reports that negative perceptions around women who combine paid work with parenthood have been comprehensively demolished in a major study by Harvard University.

It shows the daughters of working mothers enjoy better careers, higher pay and more equal relationships than those raised by stay-at-home mothers.

Using data from 24 countries including the UK and US, the Harvard study says that while working mothers "often internalise social messages of impending doom for their children", the reality is that their sons and daughters appear to thrive, with daughters benefiting most from the positive role model of a mother with a career.