Correspondence should be addressed to Kelly E. Cichy, Department of Human Development & Family Studies, School of Lifespan Development and Educational Sciences, P.O. Box 5190, 405 White Hall, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242-0001. E-mail:
J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. 2013 Nov;68(6):893-901. doi: 10.1093/geronb/gbt053. Epub 2013 Jun 2.
Parents' perceptions of their adult children's successes (or lack thereof) may be associated in different ways with discrete negative emotions (e.g., guilt, anger, disappointment, and worry). Furthermore, mothers and fathers may vary in their reactions to children's success in different domains.
Participants included 158 mothers and fathers from the same families (N = 316) and their adult child. Mothers and fathers evaluated their adult children's successes in (a) career and (b) relationship domains. Mothers and fathers also reported on several negative emotions in the parent-child tie: guilt, anger, disappointment, and worry.
For fathers, perceptions of children's poorer career success were associated with disappointment, anger, and guilt. Mothers' perceptions of children's lack of career success were associated with disappointment and worry. Mothers' perceptions of children's poorer success in relationships were associated with each of the negative emotions, with the exception of anger.
Parents experience emotions associated with unmet goals and future concerns in relationships with less successful children. Mothers may respond emotionally to career and relationship success, whereas fathers may respond emotionally primarily to their child's career success. Findings underscore the importance of considering the context of parents' negative emotional experiences in ties to adult children.
父母对成年子女成功（或缺乏成功）的看法可能以不同的方式与离散的负面情绪（如内疚、愤怒、失望和担忧）相关联。此外，母亲和父亲可能会因孩子在不同领域的成功而有不同的反应。
参与者包括来自同一家庭的 158 位母亲和父亲（N=316）及其成年子女。母亲和父亲评估了他们成年子女在（a）职业和（b）关系领域的成功。母亲和父亲还报告了亲子关系中的几种负面情绪：内疚、愤怒、失望和担忧。
对于父亲来说，对孩子较差的职业成功的看法与失望、愤怒和内疚有关。母亲对孩子职业上不成功的看法与失望和担忧有关。母亲对孩子在人际关系中较差的成功的看法与每一种负面情绪有关，除了愤怒。
父母在与不太成功的孩子的关系中会经历与未实现的目标和未来担忧相关的情绪。母亲可能会对职业和关系的成功产生情绪反应，而父亲可能会主要对孩子的职业成功产生情绪反应。研究结果强调了在考虑亲子关系中父母负面情绪体验的背景时，考虑到这一点的重要性。
