今週のトピックです If you're the first-born in the family, ever notice how you just can't help but offer helpful, if unsolicited(求められていないのに), advice to your younger brothers or sisters? If you're a middle child, in between taking orders from your bossy older sis, do you always find yourself settling family arguments? And we all know what the youngest spends her time doing: goofing off(ふざける) and causing trouble. It's just common sense: the oldest child is responsible, the middle child is diplomatic(外交的), the baby of the family is the rebel(反逆者) - and the only child is spoiled for life. But is there any truth to these stereotypes? Does birth order really affect your personality?
The short answer is, sort of. "Birth order doesn't determine personality," says Nina Howe, professor of early childhood and elementary education at Concordia University in Montreal. Personality is the result of a number of factors. Genetics, education, social and economic environment, and any number of life experiences all play a part in shaping who you are. In fact, Judith Rich Harris, a developmental psychologist(発達心理学の専門家) based in New Jersey is one of many psychologists who don't buy the birth-order theory. Harris says our personalities are formed by a lot more than our family influences, including birth order. That's because children - especially teens - try to behave more like their peers than their families.
So why do people think birth order has an effect? "Psychologists all agree that personality has something to do with what went on when you were a child," says Del Paulhus, professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia. And everyone has a family. One theory is that children seek to find their own niche in the clan(一族). So siblings (兄弟姉妹たち)will work to differentiate themselves from each other, possibly falling into typical birth-order positions. Keep reading to see how your personality traits(特色) compare to those associated with particular birth-order positions.
If you're the first in line...Oldest kids are the only child in the family for awhile, which is why first-borns share many personality traits with onlies. Their parents are new to the game so tend to have high expectations, which drives first-borns to achieve at all costs. Growing up in Montreal, Isabelle Bonsaint had dreams of being a fashion designer until her parents discouraged her. "They said it was fine as a leisure activity, but for a career you need something solid," says Bonsaint, now 30. She obliged - (義務付ける)typical first-born behaviour - and sacrificed her dreams. Instead, she opted for psychology, a field she knew little about (but has since grown to love). Oldest kids stick to the family rules. They tend to be conservative, responsible, status-conscious and - due to the praise parents lavish upon them for following the rules - self-confident.
If you're stuck in the middle...Chloe Stuart knows what that's all about. The 32-year-old native of Kingston, Ont., is the second-born of three girls. She says she's the typical middle child - good-natured and empathetic. "I've always been the peacemaker in the family," she says. "I hate discord(不一致)." When she does see a fight, Chloe says she plays the diplomat, listening carefully to each side and then trying to get the parties to see common ground.
If you're bringing up the rear...The last-born have to find a way to assert(主張する)their individuality. "You already have an environment created for you," says Alison Morley, 29, an administrator at the University of Toronto and the youngest child of two. "You have to find your own way to navigate it." Younger children tend to be a little more rebellious, a little less authoritarian,(権威主義者) and more likely to take risks - because they know they can get away with it. The babies of the family are also known for their agreeable and affectionate natures.