Older Koreans feel most hurt when their children say it is impossible to communicate with them, a straw poll suggests. The Chosun Ilbo conducted an online poll of 205 members of Senior Tong, an online community of people over 50, 36.2 percent of whom said they were hurt most when they were told by their children that it is difficult to get a conversation going with them.

The second most hurtful charge for 23.5 percent was when their children faulted their ability to handle modern gadgetry like mobile phones or the Internet. Third was when the children say they cannot come to see their parents because they are busy with 21.2 percent.

What parents want to hear from their children on Parents' Day is "Thank you for raising me well," with 41.2 percent. "Don't worry about us and spend the rest of your life just taking care of yourself," came second with 30 percent. Wishes for longevity and good health ranked third with 18 percent.

The most coveted gift from children for Parents' Day was cash with 48 percent. Medical services such as checkups or expensive dental implants ranked second with 20.8 percent, and the latest electronic goods followed with 15 percent. What parents wanted to do with their children on Parents' Day was travel, have a decent conversation, and eat out.

"When parents age and lose control over many aspects of life such as economic power, their self-respect gets hurt very easily, even by a small rebuke, so what they want to hear most from the children is a word of thanks for having raised them," psychologist Park Jin-saeng said. "Many Korean parents still regard successful rearing of children as their most important achievement."