J Child Fam Stud (2016) 25:3657–3674 DOI 10.1007/s10826-016-0521-7 ORIGINAL PAPER High Hopes? Educational, Socioeconomic, and Ethnic Differences in Parents’ Aspirations for their Unborn Children Elaine Reese 1 ● Elizabeth R. Peterson 2 ● Karen Waldie 2 ● Johanna Schmidt 3 ● Dinusha Bandara 4 ● Polly Atatoa Carr 5 ● Cameron Grant 6,7,8 ● Jan Pryor 9 ● Susan M.B. Morton 4,6 Published online: 12 September 2016 © Springer Science+Business Media New York 2016 Abstract Parents’ aspirations shape children’s develop- ment. In this study, over 6700 pregnant women and over 4300 of their partners from the Growing Up in New Zealand cohort responded to a question about their hopes, dreams, and expectations for their unborn children. Responses were coded according to a Maslowian hierarchy of needs. Mothers and their partners predominantly mentioned self- actualization and physiological aspirations for their unborn children, but their responses varied as a function of parental ethnicity and level of educational achievement and less so as a function of socioeconomic status. Mothers of Eur- opean ethnicity, and parents with higher levels of educa- tional achievement, mentioned more aspirations for their children—especially for self-actualization and belonging— than mothers of non-European ethnicity and parents with lower levels of educational achievement. These findings are discussed with respect to Maslowian theory and cultural developmental theories, and in terms of understanding the aspirations of parents from diverse backgrounds. Keywords Family dynamics/processes ● Family resources ● Pregnancy/birth ● Transition to parenthood ● Cultural practices Introduction Parents do not often talk openly or explicitly about their aspirations for their children; however, researchers claim that all parents have seemingly “narcissistic and self- indulgent” hopes, dreams, and expectations for their chil- dren and their futures (Barnett et al. 2003). These imagin- ings are thought to be particularly intense during pregnancy (Barnett et al. 2003). Barnett et al. asserted that these aspirations are a normal part of the expectant-parent attachment process, helping them to bond with their help- less and dependent newborn and to accept the lifelong commitment and investment needed to raise a child. Parental beliefs, values and socialization goals for their children are critical influences on children’s development (e.g., Baumrind 1968; Goodnow 1988; Miller 1988). Socia- lization goals range from specific skills and behaviors (e.g., good manners and academic ability) to more general qualities * Elaine Reese ereese@psy.otago.ac.nz 1 Department of Psychology, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin 9054, New Zealand 2 School of Psychology, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand 3 School of Social Sciences, University of Waikato, Hamilton New Zealand 4 School of Population Health, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand 5 National Institute of Demographic and Economic Analysis, University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand 6 Centre for Longitudinal Research—He Ara ki Mua, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand 7 Department of Paediatrics: Child and Youth Health, School of Medicine, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand 8 General Paediatrics, Starship Children’s Hospital, Auckland New Zealand 9 School of Psychology, Victoria University, Wellington New Zealand Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10826-016-0521-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.