What Is Middle Child Syndrome

• What is middle child syndrome
• Origin and theory
• Characteristics of the middle child
• Does science agree
• Known factors that can affect personalities and outcomes

What Is Middle Child Syndrome?

Middle child syndrome is the belief that children born between the oldest children and youngest children in the family are the most disadvantaged, neglected, and overlooked. A middle-born child tends to receive the least amount of attention from parents according to that belief. It is a hypothesis, not a medical diagnosis.

The middle-child syndrome has established itself within pop culture as a widely accepted idea.

But is this a real phenomenon?

Origin and Theory

Austrian psychotherapist, Alfred Adler, suggested that a family’s birth order determined each child’s personality traits.

Siblings living in a shared household would have strikingly diverse personalities despite being raised together.

Thousands of researchers have studied birth order traits as a result of Adler’s theory and publication. 

Numerous studies have compared personality traits, intellectual ability, social competence, mental health problems, self-esteem, proneness to accidents, and more among different birth orders.

In infancy, firstborn children receive more parental care and undivided attention than younger children^​1​.

Lastborn children tend to be the “spoiled baby”. They benefit from parental care and investment that are undiluted by younger siblings^​2​.

Characteristics of The Middle Child

As per Adler’s birth order theory and many studies afterward, the following are some of the middle child personality characteristics or negative stereotypes:

• Feelings of sibling rivalry stemming from less attention and affection. A middle child feels obligated to compete against their siblings to receive their parents’ recognition^​3​.
• Due to a lack of attention, middle kids are insecure, confused, neglected, and rebellious. They are more likely to engage in delinquency^​4​.
• More sociable, thoughtful, responsible, ambitious, and open-minded to gain parental attention ^​5​.
• Not parents’ favorite child, middle-born children are less likely to see their parents or family as dependable sources of support compared to the first child and last child in the family^​6​.
• Lower academic achievement than the older sibling ^​7​.

Does Science Agree That Birth Order Affects Personality

Despite some studies confirming the effects of birth order, others^​8​, recent research like Ernst and Angst (1983), did not find consistent effects.

Based on their exhaustive review of studies from 1946 to 1980, Ernst and Angst concluded that birth order differences were the result of poor research design^​9​.

In 1995, Sulloway proposed a Darwinian-based theory of birth order effects and revived the interest^​10​.

However, a 2015 analysis of birth order studies by Rohrer, Egloff, and Schmukle found no correlation between birth order and extraversion, emotional stability, agreeableness, conscientiousness, or imagination^​11​.

Currently, there is still no consensus on the validity of the sibling birth order effect^​12​.

Known Factors That Can Affect Personalities and Outcomes

According to the birth order theory, parents treat their children differently based on their birth order position, thus affecting their behavior in a predictable way.

However, the impact of birth order on parent treatment may not be as large as it appears.

Here are some known factors that can affect the role of birth order in a child’s outcomes.

Environment

According to a meta-analysis of studies involving over 14 million twin pairs, both environment and genetics can significantly influence child development and behavior in later life^​13​.

Temperament

Individual differences in child temperament are genetically influenced. Temperament can affect parenting which in turn influences a child’s developmental experiences and outcomes^​14​.

For instance, temperamental characteristics can interact with environmental and family relationships risk factors to produce a marked increase in child adjustment problems^​15​.

Different cultures

A different cultural background may have a different impact on the expectations of children based on their birth order placement.

In some societies, first-born children receive more respect from siblings. They are likely to have more authority over siblings, more control of property, and more influence over others. These societies also have higher expectations of the oldest children.

In other societies, firstborns are important in stabilizing parental marriage^​16​.

References