title: "You are such a disappointment!": negative emotions and parents' perceptions of adult children's lack of success.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  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.
  
  
  METHODS
  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.
  
  
  RESULTS
  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.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  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.
authors.affiliation: 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: kcichy@kent.edu.
authors.forename: Kelly E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Cichy
authors.forename: Eva S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Lefkowitz
authors.forename: Eden M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.forename: Karen L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Fingerman
mesh_terms: D000124:Achievement; D000328:Adult; D032721:Adult Children / Q000523:psychology*; D000368:Aged; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D012737:Sex Factors; D012938:Social Perception
keywords: Achievements; Negative emotions; Parent–adult child relationships; Success.