Related Experiment Video

Updated: Sep 29, 2025

Psychophysiological Assessment of the Effectiveness of Emotion Regulation Strategies in Childhood
08:09

Psychophysiological Assessment of the Effectiveness of Emotion Regulation Strategies in Childhood

Published on: February 11, 2017

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Emotional and Behavioral Changes and Related Factors of Firstborn School-Aged Compared to Same Age Only Children

Lulu Sheng1, Bo Yang1, Mary Story2

  • 1School of Public Health and Management, Chongqing Medical University, Research Center for Medicine and Social Development, Innovation Center for Social Risk Governance in Health, Chongqing, China.

Frontiers in Public Health
|March 21, 2022
PubMed

Insights

Firstborn children exhibit fewer emotional and behavioral problems compared to only children. This study highlights factors influencing child behavior and the societal impact of China's two-child policy.

Area of Science:

  • Child Psychology
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Behavioral Science

Background:

  • The implementation of China's two-child policy necessitates understanding its impact on child development.
  • Previous research has explored sibling dynamics, but less is known about firstborns during a sibling's gestation versus only children.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare emotional and behavioral characteristics between firstborn children (during a second child's pregnancy) and school-aged only children.
  • To identify factors influencing emotional and behavioral problems in these child groups.

Main Methods:

  • A comparative study involving 1,155 children (477 firstborns, 678 only children) in urban Chongqing, China.
  • Data collected via questionnaires and the Parental Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), assessing demographics, socioeconomic status, family atmosphere, and child behavior.
  • Statistical analysis adjusted for covariates including parenting style, family relationships, and child temperament.

Main Results:

  • Firstborn children demonstrated significantly lower scores for internalizing, externalizing, and total emotional and behavioral problems compared to only children.
  • Factors associated with increased problems included difficult temperament, economic pressure, poor mother-child relationships, disharmonious family atmosphere, and permissive fathering.
  • Boys exhibited more externalizing and total problems than girls.

Conclusions:

  • Firstborn children generally present with fewer emotional and behavioral issues than only children.
  • Findings offer insights into the social implications of the two-child policy, particularly concerning child well-being and family dynamics.
Abstract

Keywords:
behavioralemotionalfirstborn childrenonly childrenrelated factors

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