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Adult Children's Problems and Successes: Implications for Intergenerational Ambivalence

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  • Kira S. Birditt
  • Karen L. Fingerman
  • Steven H. Zarit

Abstract

Ambivalence theory suggests that parents experience ambivalence due to conflicting desires to help children in need and to launch children into adulthood. This study examined parents' reports of their adult children's problems and successes and implications for ambivalence. Participants aged 40--60 years (302 men and 331 women from different families) reported on up to 3 of their adult children (N = 1,251). Men and women differentiated among children in ratings of problems, successes, and ambivalence. Men and not women reported greater ambivalence regarding children with more physical--emotional problems and less career success. Men and women reported greater ambivalence regarding children with less relationship success. Consistent with ambivalence theory, individuals feel more ambivalent regarding problematic and less successful children but men's ambivalence appears to be more sensitive to their children's problems and successes than women's ambivalence. Copyright 2010, Oxford University Press.

Suggested Citation

  • Kira S. Birditt & Karen L. Fingerman & Steven H. Zarit, 2010. "Adult Children's Problems and Successes: Implications for Intergenerational Ambivalence," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 65(2), pages 145-153.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:geronb:v:65b:y:2010:i:2:p:145-153
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/geronb/gbp125
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    Cited by:

    1. Haowei Wang & Kyungmin Kim & Jeffrey A Burr & Kira S Birditt & Karen L Fingerman & Lynn Martire, 2021. "Adult Children’s Daily Experiences With Parental Advice: The Importance of Life Problems and Relationship Quality [Social relations: An examination of social networks, social support, and sense of ," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 76(9), pages 1745-1755.
    2. Yen-Pi Cheng & Kira S. Birditt & Steven H. Zarit & Karen L. Fingerman, 2015. "Young Adults’ Provision of Support to Middle-Aged Parents," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 70(3), pages 407-416.

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