Birth 0rder In what way does who came first, who is the baby of the family, and who is sandwiched in between – influence the person we become? The truth is, from the mix of all the other things that determine who we become (think DNA, relationships, life events, and emotional ties) researchers have a hard time pinpointing that any one trait is really the result of birth order (effect not really well supported).

   Still, a few birth order generalizations do hold up under the microscope. After all, scientists and psychologists have plenty of explanations for why order matters. For one, a mom’s prenatal environment is known to change (in hormones, nutrition, etc.) with each successive pregnancy. After birth, firstborns tend to get more attention and investment from parents, a hierarchy creeps in with the arrival of new brothers and sisters, kids pick certain roles or niches within the family to differentiate themselves, and, through what psychologists call de-identification, siblings sometimes actively try to be different from the ones before them.

   Firstborn: Most explain their charactristics by saying that firstborn children have more one-on-one parent time and the responsibility of teaching and taking care of younger siblings. Many think the attention makes them sharp and responsible, with a greater pressure to succeed and do things properly – and then parents tend to loosen up on subsequent kids. It’s hard to back that observation up with evidence but, for example, some note that firstborns on average earn more money and achieve higher education levels. Nobel Prize winners and National Merit scholars are disproportionately made up of firstborns.

   Middle child: Alfred Adler, a contemporary of Freud and one of the first psychologists to propose the relevance of birth order, started the popular conception that middle children – squeezed between the oldest and the baby – tend to be agreeable team players who know how to deal well with others.

   Lastborn: Popular wisdom says that the youngest – who never quite shake the role of being the baby of the family – tend to be more free-spirited, adventurous, risky, and creative.