Parenting styles shown to influence children’s performance in school
A recent study suggests that first-born children are more likely to perform better in school and are perceived as more successful than their later-born siblings. As a first-born child myself, I am in favour of this notion – though my younger sister, however, would simply roll her eyes at this proposal before declaring that it is not true. According to research, we apparently have our parents to thank for this rivalry.
The study, published by V. Joseph Hotz and Juan Pantano, examines the correlation between parental discipline and the eventual success of the first child in school. In contrast to previous studies, this research does not examine the IQ of children, but instead looks at their performance in school, which can be attributed to more than just their intelligence. In fact, these differences are owed to work ethic, which comes from the guidance of parents.
The researchers surveyed mothers to determine perception of their children’s academic standing, and found that 33 per cent of mothers perceived their first-child to be “one of the best students in the class.” With each successive child, this percentage decreased, as only 27 per cent of mothers claimed that their fourth child was near the top of the class.
Hotz and Pantano concluded that this disparity could be explained because “earlier born siblings face more intense, systematic parental scrutiny regarding homework.” For example, TV time is more regulated in the case of first-borns, meaning more time spent doing homework. When mothers were then asked what they would do in the event that their child brought home a bad grade, punishment and increased supervision was more likely in the case of the first-born child than later children.
Essentially, Hotz and Pantano concluded that parents are easier on their later-born children. These conclusions are met with much controversy, however, from individuals who claim that this is not always the case.
Anthony Sforza, the second child in a family of two kids, believes that later-born children provide parents the opportunity to account for mistakes made by the first child, and “fix them with the second child because they’ve had the experience.” With second children and beyond, there is less trial and error than what parents experience in raising their first-born.
In an article for the Atlantic, journalist Derek Thompson proposed other potential reasons for later-born children being perceived as less successful, rejecting the idea that parental discipline is solely responsible for the success in school. “The Divorce Theory,” which is also addressed by Hotz and Pantano, explains that a change in family structure typically occurs after the first-child has been born, and the divorce then results in a disruption of the upbringing of later children. It can also cause financial tension among the family, which could have a similar result.
Thompson’s other proposals included: receiving lower quality genes from an older mother, having to share parental attention with older siblings, more lax parenting, and the lack of younger siblings to teach newly acquired skills to.
Hotz and Pantano account for these other possibilities, noting that “further research is needed to rule out alternative explanations” that may explain the difference in perceived success. However, they argue that the “results indicate that parental [discipline] may explain part of the observed birth order effects in school performance.” Numbers are numbers, and they must be taken into consideration in this analysis.
Sforza would prefer to discount the entire study, noting that, in his case in particular, “The second child doesn’t want to be less successful than the first child, so they’ll work harder to meet the success of the first child, or do better.” He also says that in his family, academic strengths vary between subjects, so academic success cannot be accurately measured.
For the time being, though, it appears the statistics favour first-borns. Even better? They provide me with the upper hand in my friendly sibling rivalry!