According to a research group led by Julia Rohrer from the University of Leipzig, it has no influence on the personality of adults, whether they grew up with a brother or sister. So far, experts have primarily considered two opposite hypotheses: either adolescents imitate their siblings or they are limited from them. The result would be stronger or weaker pronounced gender -typical personality traits. However, the team found receipts with over 85,000 adults for neither options.
The scientists evaluated twelve representative data records from nine countries. In addition to the gender of the siblings, these also included character traits. Neither the gender of a younger nor that of an older sibling systematically affected the personality of the respondents. For the psychologist Steve Lindsay from the University of Victoria in Canada, this does not necessarily mean that siblings did not play a role in personal development. There could certainly be influences that the study did not record.
Overall, however, the study once again suggests that siblings have less to do with personality in adulthood than is often assumed. Earlier studies have already shown that the sibling position – for example, whether you are a firstborn or a baby – does not make much difference either.
