I am a firstborn.
Jee-Yeon K. Lehmann, Ana Nuevo-Chiquero and Marian Vidal-Fernandez. The Early Origins of Birth Order Differences
in Children’s Outcomes and Parental Behavior.
J. Human Resources November 2, 2016 0816-8177.
Abstract
We document birth order differences in cognitive and
non-cognitive outcomes and maternal behavior from birth to adolescence using
data from the Children of the NLSY79. As early as age one, latter-born children
score lower on cognitive assessments than their siblings, and the birth order
gap in cognitive assessment increases until the time of school entry and remains
statistically significant thereafter. Mothers take more risks during pregnancy
and are less likely to breastfeed and to provide cognitive stimulation for
latter-born children. Variations in parental behavior can explain most of the
differences in cognitive abilities before school entry. Our findings suggest
that broad shifts in parental behavior from first to latter-born children is a
plausible explanation for the observed birth order differences in education and
labor market outcomes.
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In addition to having the privilege of being the first to
use clothes and toys, firstborn children can now add another advantage over
their siblings.
According to a study published in the Journal of Human
Resources, firstborn children may have better thinking skills than their
siblings because they received more mental stimulation during their early
stages of development.
Researchers from the University of Edinburgh, the Analysis
Group and the University of Sydney found that children who were born first
typically scored higher on IQ tests than their younger siblings.
For the study, researchers used data from the U.S. Children
of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth on nearly 5,000 children who were
monitored from pre-birth to age 14. Every two years, the children in the
longitudinal survey were assessed on a slew of categories, including reading,
vocabulary assessment and matching letters.
The research found that firstborn children typically perform
better than their siblings as early as age 1,
which could be due to how parents treat subsequent children. According
to the study, parents were less likely to partake in mentally stimulating
activities with their younger children, meaning they may not have developed the
same thinking skills as the older sibling.
“Our results suggests that broad shifts in parental behavior
are a plausible explanation for the observed birth order differences in
education and labor market outcomes,” Ana Nuevo-Chiquero, of the University of
Edinburgh School of Economics, said in a statement.
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They may be jokingly referred to as PFBs – precious first
borns – on popular parenting websites, but a study says first-born children
really do reap the benefits of being number one.
Research by the University of Edinburgh has found that
first-born children have superior thinking skills to their younger siblings
because they get more mental stimulation from their parents.
While the study found that parents give all their children
the same levels of emotional support, the first-born generally received more
help with tasks that develop thinking skills…
First-borns do have some disadvantages, however. A study
published in 2015 suggested that they were up to 20% more likely to develop
short-sightedness than their younger siblings.
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