Birth Order and Personality: What Psychology Research Shows
This paper examines the relationship between birth order and personality development, drawing on psychology research spanning several decades. It surveys findings on firstborn, middle, and youngest children, noting how perceived roles within the family unit influence behavior and character traits. The paper also addresses conflicting evidence, the moderating role of nature and environment, and the limited applicability of birth order theory to African-American and Hispanic populations. Key studies by Nyman, Zweigenhaft and Von Ammon, and Veronie and Fruehstorfer are discussed, with particular attention to how societal expectations may reinforce birth order stereotypes as much as innate personality tendencies.
- Introduction to Birth Order Research: Overview of birth order research trends and general findings
- Personality Traits by Birth Position: Traits associated with firstborn, middle, and youngest children
- The Youngest Child and Authority Challenges: Study linking youngest siblings to civil disobedience behavior
- The Role of Environment and Nature: How environment and nature modify birth order personality effects
- Birth Order Across Ethnic Groups: Birth order findings among African-American and Hispanic populations
- Conclusions and Future Directions: Summary of findings and call for more diverse research
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What makes this paper effective
- The paper synthesizes multiple peer-reviewed studies across different decades, giving the argument empirical breadth rather than relying on a single source.
- It demonstrates intellectual honesty by acknowledging conflicting findings — for example, studies that both support and contradict the idea that middle children are poorly adjusted.
- The inclusion of ethnic and demographic nuance (African-American and Hispanic populations) elevates the discussion beyond a generic overview.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper models the technique of comparing and contrasting competing studies: for instance, setting the 1977 university aggression study against Kuar and Deer's 1982 findings. This approach shows readers how to handle contradictory evidence by contextualizing rather than dismissing it, a core skill in social science writing.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with a general overview of birth order research trends, then moves through each sibling position (firstborn, middle, youngest) with supporting evidence. It pivots to a specific behavioral study (civil disobedience), broadens to environmental and nature-based moderators, and closes with a call for more ethnically diverse research. The bibliography lists five sources in a loose journal-citation format.
Introduction to Birth Order Research
In previous years, a considerable amount of research has been conducted on the subject of birth order and personality. However, research on this topic has declined over at least the last ten to twenty years. It is the common perception that firstborn children have the strongest disposition and exhibit leadership tendencies. Research also tends to point out that firstborn children usually achieve greater success in their professional careers. At the same time, these individuals are also more likely to experience greater mental disturbances than their younger siblings (Nyman). There are conflicting results regarding the popularity of firstborns: some researchers contend that firstborn children are generally more popular and outgoing, while others argue that firstborns are less popular and perhaps more reserved (Nyman).
Children classified as middle children are said to be more problematic than their older and younger siblings. They have been described as more aggressive than other children. A study of university students conducted in 1977 found that these students "scored high on aggression" (Nyman). However, another study contradicts this finding by stating that middle children have fewer problems. That study, conducted by Kuar and Deer in 1982, "showed that middle children have the fewest personality problems." It should be noted, however, that the way children behave can be directly attributed to the way they are expected to behave. For example, if the eldest child is expected to be a leader, he or she will most likely fulfill that expectation. The same holds true for the middle child or the lastborn.
Since the middle child is often expected to be poorly adjusted in society, that child is very likely to encounter problems with adjustment. The lastborn sibling is often seen as the "baby" of the family and is treated accordingly.
It is also interesting to note that children of African-American descent did not display any differences in character that could be attributed to their birth order. In fact, it has been questioned whether birth order plays any role at all in shaping the personalities of African-American college students.
Bibliography
Beck, Linda. "Birth Order Blues: How Parents Can Help Their Children Meet the Challenge of Their Birth Order." Library Journal. New York. May 15, 1999.
Rodriguez, Geraidine, Johnson, et al. "Significant Variables Associated With Assertiveness Among Hispanic College Women." Journal of Instructional Psychology. Spring 2001. pp. 184–191.
Nyman, Lawrence. "The Identification of Birth Order and Personality Attributes." Journal of Psychology. Jan. 1995. pp. 51–66.
Veronie, Linda and Fruehstorfer, David. "Gender, Birth Order, and Family Role Identification Among Adult Children of Alcoholics." Current Psychology. Spring 2001. pp. 53–67.
Zweigenhaft, Richard and Von Ammon, Jessica. "Birth Order and Civil Disobedience: A Test of Sulloway's Born to Rebel Hypothesis." Journal of Social Psychology. October 2000. pp. 624–629.
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