title: Daily interactions in the parent-adult child tie: Links between children's problems and parents' diurnal cortisol rhythms.
abstract: Studies have established that grown children's problems affect parental well-being, but a dearth of research has addressed daily interactions and biological systems that may underlie these associations. This study examined whether parents have different types of daily interactions with adult children who have problems and whether those interactions are associated with variations in parents' diurnal cortisol rhythms. Middle-aged parents (n=197) reported their interactions with adult children for seven consecutive days and provided saliva, analyzed for cortisol, three times a day (wake, 30 min after wake, bedtime) for four of those days. Parents were more likely to report negative encounters but not less likely to report positive interactions or contact with adult children who suffered from problems. Interactions with adult children who had physical-emotional problems had more immediate same day associations with cortisol whereas interactions with adult children who had lifestyle-behavioral problems had more delayed, or next day associations with cortisol. Daily interactions and their associations with the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-axis may be important mechanisms by which adult children with problems negatively affect parental well-being.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48104, USA. Electronic address: kirasb@umich.edu.
authors.forename: Kira S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Birditt
authors.affiliation: Department of Gerontology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA 02125, USA.
authors.forename: Kyungmin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA 16801, USA.
authors.forename: Steven H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Zarit
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
authors.forename: Karen L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Fingerman
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
authors.forename: Timothy J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Loving
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D032721:Adult Children / Q000523:psychology*; D000368:Aged; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007030:Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System / Q000378:metabolism; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D010913:Pituitary-Adrenal System / Q000378:metabolism; D012463:Saliva / Q000378:metabolism; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000378:metabolism*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Adult children; Cortisol; Daily diary; Problems