Drawing on social cognitive theory, this study investigates the influence of family business owners as parents on the succession intentions of their children. Measures of parental emotional support, entrepreneurial self-efficacy, and affective commitment are applied to predict succession intentions. We test our research model on an international sample of21,525 sons and daughters of family business owners. The results suggest that parental emotional support positively influences succession intentions and is mediated by two cognitive factors: entrepreneurial self-efficacy and affective commitment to the family business. The results also suggest interaction effects of gender and birth order on succession intentions. This study offers important theoretical and practical insights into the aspirations of next-generation members of family businesses.