• Parents prefer humour over brains
• Experts say it's because they can relate
• And hardly anyone wants psychic offspring

A survey of more than 300 mums and dads found more than 39 per cent wanted their child to have a good sense of humour - nearly 21 per cent wanted them to be extremely intelligent. Good looks came third, with nearly 16 per cent of people wanting their kids to be attractive.

While men would rather their kids to be good at sport than be smart, the babypredictor.com.au survey found a quarter of women aged 16 to 22 would rather their child be attractive than to have brains.

Ranked equal fifth was singer Alicia Key's musical talent and painter Brett Whiteley's artistic ability (5.5 per cent). A flair for acting came in at sixth (2.5 per cent).

Only 1 per cent wanted their offspring to have a special gift, like psychic powers.

University of Sydney psychologist Marc de Rosnay said people wanted to have a child they could relate to.

"People have a desire to connect, to share in experiences and life. These are the things that make people important to us - not how clever they are," she said.

Beverley Park mum Mary Tannous said she would much rather her one-year-old daughter Celina be funny than smart.

But a leading psychologist has warned the "genetic roll of the dice" and environmental factors won't always produce what parents want, and pushing expectations on a child can be damaging.

Adolescent psychologist Dr Michael Carr-Gregg said many new parents imagined their child would be a carbon copy of themselves.

"You just never know what you are going to get, some people strike gold and get (AFL footballer) Buddy Franklin, and other people get something that they rather hope they wouldn't get," he said.

"You don't get a choice, you just have to make sure whatever you get feels safe, valued, listened to and has boundaries so they have the opportunity to become the best that they can become.

"The job of parents is to offer a smorgasbord of activities, be it art, music, drama, dance, or sport."