Pushy parents 'see their children as extension of themselves' They were then asked to list two aspirations that either they or a friend had never fulfilled in their life, such as becoming a professional tennis player or writing a published novel. Finally, the parents were questioned about their desire for their child to reach the ambitions they had failed to achieve. The results, published in the PLOS ONE journal, showed that parents who saw their children as extensions of themselves were more likely to want their children to fulfil their own abandoned dreams, but not those of friends. Prof Brad Bushman, co-author of the study, said these parents appeared to be "living vicariously through their children." "Parents then may bask in the reflected glory of their children, and lose some of the feelings of regret and disappointment that they couldn't achieve these same goals," he said.