Nathan Exposed » Does Birth Order Matter?

Does Birth Order Matter?

How much effect does birth order have on us? Can the order you were born in define how much money you make and how intelligent you are? Can it change the role you play throughout your entire life? People have always had theories, but now scientific studies are proving them.

I recently read a fascinating article in Time about this, and the results were right on the money. My siblings are a classic case scenario. My parents had 3 sons, and everything the study showed matched us perfectly. Keep in mind, there are always exceptions to any study. This is some of what I found out, and I’m going to use the words “he” and “him” because it’s just easier. You can apply it to girls too. It’s been awhile since I read it, so I’m going by memory…

The oldest child: According to this study, the oldest child is the wealthiest, most educated and tallest. While growing up, he is extremely concerned about pleasing his parents and he will work hard to be a model student in school. The oldest child is often the caretaker, and usually the most successful. An average of 42% of all leaders in the work force are first born! My oldest brother is a doctor. He fits every single thing on here. He even moved back to our hometown to be closer to my parents (i.e. caretaker). If you line him up against a wall, along with my middle brother and me, you can see a slope in our heights. Each son was progressively shorter.

The middle child: They are the most complex and unpredictable of the study. Middle children constantly feel stuck in limbo, and sometimes feel they have to work twice as hard to get attention. Their roles drastically shift because at one point, they are the youngest. Then a new baby comes along and throws off everything. The oldest child is always paving the way, so naturally parents are focused on them. The youngest child always needs care, so they also focus on him. That puts the middle child in a position of confusion. When it comes to success, middle children are still more successful than their younger siblings. But they often struggle with low self esteem. If you throw 4 children into the equation, it gets even more confusing. But the role of oldest and youngest are still clearly defined, while everyone else is in the middle.

The youngest child: These are the artistic, outspoken rebels. They don’t like rules, they don’t like authority, and they aren’t interested in pleasing their parents. As adults, they are often self employed or entrepreneurs, because the thought of taking orders from someone else just makes them feel suffocated. They are also the most likely to show up at a protest. In fact, they feel so strongly about things that they don’t even care if they are arrested. Studies of people who have been arrested during public protests show that many of them are the youngest child. This study believes that the youngest aren’t afraid of being arrested, and aren’t concerned about the rules. Physically, they are often the shortest with a smaller frame.

This is absolutely amazing because I am the youngest child. All of that applies to me. I am designer, I work from home (for myself), and I don’t let other people define me. I am sort of small, but I feel big and mighty on the inside.

So I thought this was most interesting, and these are facts to consider when people have children. Keep in mind this is all very stereotypical, though. What if the children are adopted? What if some of the siblings join the family through a second marriage? There are many factors that can throw this off. But as a generalization, it is extremely true in the case of my brothers and me.

I’m curious, how many of my readers are the youngest children?

Fri, Nov 30, 2007 @ 2:38 pm | Filed in Family | Permalink

5 Comments

I fit everything about the oldest except that I’m the shortest of my parent’s three kids (all boys).

Posted by Howard on Fri, Nov 30, 2007 @ 3:27 pm

I’ve read two books on birth order…a long time ago. Most everything they mentioned fit my family nearly to a T. Me? An oldest. Definitely. On one of my birthdays, my mom gave me a book called THE PRESSURE AND PRIVILEGE OF BEING NUMBER ONE. Nice birthday gift, eh?

Posted by Lewis on Fri, Nov 30, 2007 @ 6:36 pm

Umm . . . I’m the middle but I’m the doctor, make the $, and I’m the caretaker. My older brother (who is taller) still works in a job where he has to clock in and out and my sister (the baby) works a very corporate job at a huge fortune 500 company.

Posted by Jeffrey on Sat, Dec 1, 2007 @ 12:44 am

i’m the youngest in my family. almost everything is correct! just the part where i should have a smaller frame. i actually have a bigger frame than my older sis!

Posted by ML on Sat, Dec 1, 2007 @ 9:54 am

Oh boy! Tell me about been the middle one. You feel like you always have to reconcile the oldest and the youngest, only to find that once you have done so they both turn against you.

Posted by danny on Mon, Dec 3, 2007 @ 11:27 am