Samenhang tussen de Plaats in de Kinderrij en de Psychosociale Ontwikkeling van Kleuters

Abstract

Subject: The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between birth order and the psychosocial development of preschoolers. Method: To study the psychosocial development of 4 to 6 year old children, the following variables were measured: quality of the sibling relationship (warmth and conflict), social competence, child temperament (surgency, negative affect and effortful control) and (internalising and externalising) problem behaviour. In a cross-sectional design (n = 842) parents filled in questionnaires about their preschooler and one sibling, concerning these concepts. Results: To verify if psychosocial development of preschoolers differed on the basis of birth order, (M)ANOVA’s and post hoc Tukey HSD tests were conducted. Significant differences were found for sibling warmth, internalizing problems, negative affect, effortful control and social competence. Firstborns showed more sibling warmth and social competence and less extraversion in comparison to laterborns. However, firstborns showed more internalizing problems, negative affect and surgency in comparison to laterborns. No significant differences were found for sibling conflict or externalizing problems. Conclusion: The main conclusion is that the psychosocial development of preschoolers differs on the basis of birth order. However, future research should reveal more precise information about the underlying patterns.