Summary Of Examining The Effects Of Birth Order On Personality

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The article “Examining the effects of birth order on personality” was a study that examined groups of siblings and how a persons “position among siblings has a lasting
Impact on that persons life course”. Recent research regarding the relation between the order in which siblings were born and intelligence shows a slight decrease in performance on psychometric intelligence tests from firstborns to siblings born later on. Although the research shows a decline in intelligence, it found no birth order on “extroversion, emotional stability, agreeableness, conscientiousness or imagination”. (Rohrer,J.M., Egloff,B., Schmukle,S.C.)

The question posed has fascinated not only scientists but the general public for more than 100 years. In 1874, a man named Francis Galton who was born after eight of his siblings investigated a sample of scientists who were English to show that firstborn children were overrepresented. He believed that the eldest son was able to thrive intellectually because they enjoyed special treatment from their mother and father. He believed the eldest child was privileged, but were also somewhat burdened with responsibility to set a good example for their younger siblings.
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Firstborns often try to act like surrogate parents for their younger siblings which is a behaviour that is likely to increase conscientiousness and to try to please their mother and father. Later-borns are more likely to score higher on imagination while firstborns score higher on “psychometric intelligence tests and correspondingly score higher on intellect”. (Sulloway