Helicopter parenting can be a good thing.

• Position: YOUR LIFE

Middle-aged parents are more involved in their grown children's lives than ever, states research from Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. "We found that middle-aged parents help each of their grown children with many types of support" on a regular basis, divulges Karen Fingerman, a professor in the Gerontology and Developmental and Families Studies program. "This is a dramatic increase from 20 years ago, when young adults received much less support from their parents."

Not all grown children get the same support, and which offspring parents help most may surprise some people. A majority expect parents to help their youngest child or one that is struggling, but the family studies specialist found that parents are more eager to help the child they consider most successful.

However, "no matter which adult child receives the most support, today's parents are helping each child with significant forms of support every few weeks," Fingerman points out. "We've heard a lot about helicopter parents [mothers and fathers who always are hovering nearby] in the past decade, and often the comments are negative, but parents are giving a considerable amount of help to grown children, and they play a critical role in helping young adults make the transition from adolescence to adulthood.

"It's a complicated world today. Eighteen-year-olds just can't strike out on their own to make it like they did 100 years ago. We're beyond the time when...