Birth Order and You
Can your birth order influence your personality?
Do you think birth order affects your personality? Have you wondered how two people in the same family can be so different? Sure, genetics and environment can contribute to your unique personality, and maybe your birth order could too.
Are you the youngest, middle, oldest or only child? Were you the second girl of 3 boys or the youngest of 5 children with a gap of 8 years? Do you think that comes into play?
Middle children
Yes! We are going first! Middle child here! Can you guess? Middle children are always, well, in the middle in articles like this. I guess the youngest could be last or an only child, but that's not the point.
The middles are never first if you think about it. Never. That's OK. I am accepting that. In this article we rule!
Here I am (far right) with my older sister and younger brother, amongst those 1970s patterns.
Middle children characteristics
From various articles I’ve read, middle children usually are the ones that are very different from their family. I think this holds true if you have an older sibling that is the same gender as you. But maybe not so much if the older sibling is the opposite of your gender. She may have more characteristics of an oldest child (since she is the 1st born daughter) and less middle child characteristics.
We are peacemakers and mediators. On the flip side we tend to be people pleasers. Middle children also tend to be empathetic. We can see both sides of an argument. Also, true here. We also tend to be more peer oriented and are the first to leave the house. True and true here.
We can also be seen as rebellious, but I think that is our way to carve out our niche in the world and it starts with our own family of origin,
Eldest Child
Oldest siblings are known to be leaders and have a deep sense of responsibility.
They want to excel in all they do. Often, they become overachievers and can have a fear of failure. I wonder if this is from having to set a good example to younger siblings. This can also lead to perfectionism
The older I get the more empathy I have for the eldest child, especially if you were a daughter. I think many times, eldest girls, were pushed into rules of care-taking younger siblings before they were ready. Do you know there is an eldest daughter syndrome?
Youngest Child aka Baby
According to some articles the youngest child can be outgoing and charming. They can be attention seekers and natural comedians.
The youngest child can be persistent. They don’t give up and can be very competitive. This could be because they are jockeying for their parent’s attention. They also tend to be the most resilient of other siblings.
These children can be risk-takers and they often challenge family rules.
Only child
Only children can be sensitive and independent. They can also have a more difficult time compromising and sharing. They also tend to be the closer to their parents compared to children of other birth orders.
They are also very skilled at learning how to entertain themselves and are very resourceful since they have more time on their own.
Parents of an only child here!
My husband and I are parents of an only child. From a young age, we tried to keep social opportunities available to him. I joined a mom’s club, and we later joined a church. He always had multiple play dates and activities scheduled.
Our son values his time alone as a teen. Like many teens, I guess. He feels like he needs the down time to listen to favorite music, read and draw. He values his time with friends as well He has always been people oriented and has always been comfortable interacting with adults.
Birth order and how it affects your personality and your interactions throughout life has always been interesting to me. I know many other things come into play and I’ve only scratched the surface. The information above is from various articles I’ve read throughout the years. As a disclaimer, I will say this is for entertainment purposes only.
Save the date!
Do you know Middle Child Day is coming up? I will have an entire article just for us! Fellow middle children, I’d love to hear of your experiences as life as a middle child for a future article.
Middle child with an older brother here, Jane! I am different from my siblings. I even look different, favoring my father's genes over my mom's. I'm more easygoing. I avoid conflict. I have to say I wasn't in a hurry to move out.
Eldest in a way. Though middle as well as I had a sister who passed before I was born. And I find I have characteristics of both. Tendency to want to lead and achieve, but also very empathetic and tending towards introversion.