Many say that our upbringing has some effect on our personality. Some psychologists also believe that it is also affected by one’s place in the family, or rather, the birth order.
Some studies show that first born are likely to be high-achievers, more mature and responsible. One reason may be that, being their first born, parents tend to place higher expectations.
Middle children are more likely to be social and to have a more relaxed outlook on life. This may be because parents don’t have their undivided attention on them so they’re used to sharing yet not stressing too much.
The youngest child is more likely to be amiable and attention-seeking. Being the youngest, parents tend to provide more attention and to hold lower expectations to them. Parents also tend to have a more relaxed parenting style as they would have become more confident in their parenting skills by then.
Only children tend to be more creative as well as academic. They may find it hard to relate to their peers since, being largely in the presence of adults, they tend to take on their parents’ traits, and be better used at relating with older people.
Some studies oppose the idea that birth order effects personality and give importance to other factors, such as experience, genes, and the environment. It is understood that each individual person is moulded in a different way, yet the birth order is one of the factors.
In the upcoming blogs, I will be discussing each birth order in more detail.
– Alessia Camilleri