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Firstly, let me tell you a little about myself - I am a twin, born joint 4th into a family of 17 children (no, that's not a typo, I did mean 17!). I have a slightly unconventional life-style; I live on a boat, move around a lot, and don't have a 'proper' job but earn a living as a singer/songwriter, writer, and web-designer. I consider myself fairly outgoing and artistic. My twin brother on the other hand is conventional, introverted, scientific and logical - in other words, we couldn't be more different, so what does that say for birth order and how it contributes to personality formation?

Much research has been done on the effects of birth order on personality formation, yet none of it has ever found conclusive proof that the order of your birth within the family affects you in a certain, definable way.

Common generalizations made regarding birth order and personality are:

1. That the eldest child will be responsible, conscientious, self-sufficient, and grow up to be a good leader who likes to be in control.
2. That the middle child will always feel left out within the family and thus either show a tendency to display attention seeking behaviour, or be compelled to avoid conflict and become the mediator.
3. That the youngest child will be spoilt leading to dependence and selfishness, though they will often be very charming and use this to get their own way into adult life.

These are sweeping generalizations which oversimplify a complex matter, for example they do not taking into account the following:

1. Age gaps - if the middle child is born after the eldest has left home, that middle child will have a place within the family that is more like being the eldest child, yet they are not the eldest, what effect does this have?
2. The number of children within the family - in a family of 6, are the 2nd to 5th born all middle children?
3. The sexes of the children - is a girl who has both an elder brother and a younger brother less likely to exhibit so called 'middle child' syndrome because as the only girl she has her own 'special place' and identity within the family?
4. What about twins, triplets, quads etc?

I strongly believe that sibling relationships do have a huge influence on a child's development and thus personality formation, but is this down to the order of birth or the power struggles and contests for attention that naturally occur within families? In addition to this, how do we distinguish between what personality traits are down to nature rather than nurture?

With so many factors beyond birth order affecting personality formation (parental attitudes, education, social conditions to name just a few), it is near impossible to come to any true conclusions regarding the theory of how your place in the family contributes to personality formation. But based on the difference in personality between myself and my twin brother, I would have to conclude that birth order is not a major factor in personality formation.

Learn more about this author, Katherine Wells.
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