why first-borns RULE the By Michael Grose To better understand the power of birth order, parenting expert Michael Grose has written a timely update to his ground-breaking national bestseller Why First-borns Rule The World. Sixty years ago a family of four children was the norm; today nearly 60 per cent of Australian families comprise two or less children. In Why First-borns Rule The World Grose analyses the latest studies on birth order from a range of families, and each member’s likely personality and disposition.
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n this era of small, planned families, birth-order theory is more relevant than ever. We are now witnessing the emergence of children with easily defined birth-order personalities. When families are small and the age gap between siblings is two years or less then competition for a space in the family is at its most fierce. These are ideal conditions for birth-order theory to come to life. Now more than ever birth-order theory adds a clearly defined, easily identifiable dimension to children’s personality development. Why birth-order theory works. Birth-order theory works so well because we are social beings trying to find a spot in our social groups. The first social group we belong to is our family. Within our family we compete with our siblings for different places, positions and niches. When one position, say the responsible child, is filled then we look for another. So younger children tend to define themselves according to whatever territory is left over once the eldest has staked their claim. When we understand that the prime motivation of any child is to find their special place in the family then birth order begins to make sense. It is folly to try to understand a child’s personality development or behaviour without taking into account the personalities and interests of others in the family. When you understand the rules of birth order and consider all the variables then an accurate picture begins to form of a child’s birth-order personality. 20 Peninsula Kids – Winter 2021