To examine black-white differences in the public's definitions of appropriate behavior toward a frail older parent for sons and daughters in dual earner couples, data were collected from a probability sample of 241 white and 64 black adults. Telephone interviews were used for data collection. Respondents were asked to rate the appropriateness of 13 filial behaviors toward a frail mother by a working child whose spouse also worked. In approximately one-half of the cases, the adult child was identified as a female; in the others the child was identified as a male. A similar manipulation was used with five questions concerning appropriate frequency of filial behavior. The results indicated that blacks were more likely than whites to believe it appropriate for children of both sexes to assist an elderly parent, even when control for level of educational attainment was introduced. Blacks more than whites thought that children with a frail elderly parent should have more contact with that parent, that adult children of both sexes should visit a mother at the mother's home more frequently, and that adult children of both sexes should bring meals to the mother more frequently. At the same time, they, like whites, attributed this responsibility to daughters more than to sons. The results of this study suggest that blacks are more likely to espouse norms prescribing higher degrees of responsibility concerning an elderly mother and higher levels of contact with such a parent, particularly for daughters. (LLL)