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Published on: November 19, 2015
Direct and indirect effects of birth order on personality and identity: support for the null hypothesis
Curtis S Dunkel1, Colin R Harbke, Dennis R Papini
1Department of Psychology, Western Illinois University, Macomb 61455, USA. c-dunkel@wiu.edu
Abstract:
The authors proposed that birth order affects psychosocial outcomes through differential investment from parent to child and differences in the degree of identification from child to parent. The authors conducted this study to test these 2 models. Despite the use of statistical and methodological procedures to increase sensitivity and reduce error, the authors did not find support for the models. They discuss results in the context of the mixed-research findings regarding birth order and suggest further research on the proposed developmental dynamics that may produce birth-order effects.
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