Abstract:

This research study aims to explore the extent to which having an older sibling influences an
individual's level of maturity and how this effect varies based on the gender of the siblings. The
study shows that having an older sibling can have a significant impact on a younger sibling's
emotional and behavioral maturity, and that the impact can be positive or negative. For instance,
older sisters can promote better communication skills and emotional intelligence in younger
brothers, while having an older brother can increase the sense of independence and rebellious
behavior in younger sisters. The study uses a combination of qualitative and quantitative
methods, including online surveys and interviews, to collect data on the experiences of
individuals with older siblings. The findings of this research have important implications for
parents, teachers, and mental health professionals, as understanding the effect of older siblings
on younger ones is crucial for promoting positive developmental outcomes.

Background:

As they develop together in the same family, siblings have a significant impact on one another's
lives. Age and gender differences between siblings can have a big impact on how they develop,
especially in terms of their emotional and behavioral maturity. Since the older sibling can often
be viewed as another parent or a mentor for the younger siblings, this can likely impact the level
of maturity in the younger siblings. This paper aims to explore the question, "How and to what
extent does having an older sibling influence an individual's level of maturity, and how does this
effect vary depending on the gender of the siblings" based on the collection and revision of
other sources and first hand experiments explained below.

As Volling and McElwain (2016) point out, "Sibling relationships can have significant influences
on children's social, emotional, and cognitive development" (p. 30) Having an older sibling, in
particular, can play a crucial role in shaping the younger sibling's level of maturity.

Older siblings can impact their younger siblings first by serving as role models for them. This
means that the younger siblings will look up to the older siblings wanting to be like them and
adopting most of their traits. McHale, Updegraff, and Whiteman (2012) claim that "Older siblings
often serve as role models, guides, and sources of socialization for their younger siblings" (p.
118) For instance, older siblings can also correct their younger siblings behaviors in certain
situations therefore teaching the younger ones to react more maturely. However, this is not
always the case. As much as an older sibling can positively influence the younger sibling they
can also have a negative impact.

The level of maturity reflected on a younger sibling can often vary based on the sex of the older
sibling. For instance, having an older sister can promote better communication skills and
emotional intelligence in younger brothers. Feinberg et al. (2012) explains that "Older sisters'
positive sibling behaviors predicted younger brothers' improvement in communication skills and
emotional functioning" (p. 84)This happens because older sisters are often more caring and
take on the role of a mother and they interact more with their siblings due to gender norms
regarding caregiving.

On the contrary, having an older brother increases the sense of independence and rebellious
behavior in younger sisters. Whiteman, McHale, and Crouter (2007) explain that younger sisters
often intentionally change their personality to be different from their older brothers by engaging
in behaviors that allow them to assert their independence (p. 652)

SIbling relationships also impact the interpersonal skills of an individual such as problem solving
and negotiation. Based on Volling and McElwain (2016)siblings solve problems between each
other by negotiating and trying to achieve dominance which is why they develop crucial social
and emotional skills at younger ages. The high development of their social skills make younger
siblings seem more mature and grown up since most people their age that don't have older
siblings don't have the same social awareness.

In conclusion, the influence of having an older sibling on an individual's level of maturity is a

complex process that can vary based on factors such as gender and sibling dynamics.
However, as Jenkins and Smith (1990. note, "Sibling relationships can be protective for children
living in disharmonious homes" (p. 66., suggesting that healthy sibling relationships may
promote positive developmental outcomes in children and adolescents that in the absence of
older siblings would otherwise not be promoted. However, based on these two studies it is
unclear if sibling relationships actually increase one's maturity, but nevertheless it does increase
the skills needed to seem more mature and grown up.

The current study:

How and to what extent does having an older sibling influence an individual's level of maturity,
and how does this effect vary depending on the gender of the siblings? If an individual has an
older sibling then they grow up to be more mature than an individual that doesn't have an older
sibling. If an individual grows up with an older sister, they are more likely to develop emotional
maturity than an individual that grows up with an older brother.
Harris Judith Rich, an american researcher that studies why children turn out the was they do
conducted a study that supports the case that siblings, specifically older siblings, are important
in assisting younger siblings socialize and can have a bearing effect on their emotional and
intellectual development. The study explores the various ways that older siblings might influence
the growth and maturity of a younger sibling, including social learning by modeling, and
teaching. It also emphasizes how crucial it is to take into account the larger social environment
in which sibling interactions take place, including cultural and socioeconomic variables, in order
to comprehend how older siblings might influence someone's maturity. (Harris JR). However,
even though many studies have been conducted on this matter, they have failed to show the
importance of gender differences between older and younger siblings and how they affect the
development of maturity. That is why this research paper aims to prove that having an older
sibling does affect the development of emotional maturity and the extent varies on the difference
or similarity in sex between the siblings. It is highly important for parents, teachers and mental
health professionals to really understand the effect of older siblings on those who are younger
since it is proves to have an effect in personality, which means that it may also have an impact
on emotional and behavioral maturity

Mathods:

The purpose of this field study is to investigate the extent and ways in which having an older
sibling influences an individual's level of maturity, and how this effect varies depending on the
gender of the siblings. This study will utilize two methods of which one is qualitative and one is
quantitative. An online survey and interviews have been conducted to collect data on the
experiences of individuals with older siblings and to prove whether a person's maturity varies
based on having an older sibling and the gender of their sibling.

Online survey:
The online survey was sent to 25 people, of which 5 respondents that identified as female had
an older sister, 5 respondents that identified as female had an older brother, 5 respondents that
identified as male had an older sister, 5 respondents that identified as male had an older brother
and 5 respondents that had no siblings. The respondents are people that I know would be
beneficial to my research due to the close relationship they have with their siblings. The survey
had approximately 15 questions and all respondents were older than 15. The survey had
questions about the respondents' relation to their older siblings regarding age and gender
differences and also questions about how each respondent would react in a given situation.
Each question had 3 multiple choice answers each marked with points from 1-3, 1 being the
least mature choice and 3 being the most mature. When I collected the data, I divided it into
categories of Female- Female, Female- Male, Male- Male, Male-Female relationship and put the
points of each respondent that fell into each category. In addition I had another set of categories
showing the points of people who had 1 older sibling, 2 older siblings, 3+ older siblings and no
siblings and put all their individual points. The maximum points for each category was 28 points.
The survey served to prove to what extent each participant’s maturity was affected by their older
sibling rather than how they were affected. The extent of the effect is measured in points as
explained above. The survey was sent through email and it was in a google form. It only
contained close-ended questions in order to make it easier for me to calculate each individual's
level of maturity with points as I explained earlier. The survey was anonymous and the answers
remained confidential and they weren't discussed with anyone. This was clearly stated in the
consent form that each respondent had to agree to before continuing with the survey.

Interview:
In order to collect qualitative data for this study, 4 interviews were conducted. 1 interviewee
identified as female and had an older sister, 1 interviewee identified as female and had an older
brother, 1 interviewee identified as male and had an older sister, and 1 interviewee that
identified as male and had an older brother. The interviewees were people that also answered
the online survey. The interview served to gain more details as to how each participant was
affected by their siblings rather than to what extent. All the questions were open-ended
questions that allowed participants to express their opinion on the research question, their
personal experience with their older siblings, their feelings towards the effect that their older
siblings had on them, etc. The interview was semi-structured and contained, but not limited to, 3
open ended, pre-prepared questions. In order to collect the data, notes were taken on the
answers that best correlated to the aim of this study. The answers remained confidential
between the interviewer and the interviewee at all times and they will be anonymous throughout
this research paper.

Findings:

1. From this line graph we can see that Female-Female and Female-Male relationships are
the most constant regarding the level of maturity from one respondent to the other. The
most inconsistent data comes from respondents with no siblings and Male-Male sibling
relationships. While Male-Female is for some respondents higher and for some lower
however it does not have large outliers.
2. In this line chart we can see that the amount of data is not the same for every category
(number) of siblings however it is obvious that the greater the number of siblings the
greater the level of maturity in an individual. The most constant line is the 3 siblings line
while the most inconstant line is the 0 siblings line. The 1 and 2 siblins lines are not
completely constant however they average around the same
3. The table shows the relationship between the gender of older and younger siblings and
their corresponding maturity level score. The relationship type is represented on the left
column of the table, while the corresponding maturity level score is represented on the
right column.
The data in the bar chart suggest that there is some relationship between the gender of
older and younger siblings and their respective maturity levels. On average, individuals
who have an older sister (female- female or female-male relationship) have the highest
maturity level scores (25 points), followed by females who have older brothers (23
points), and males with older brothers having the lowest score (19 points) regarding
people with older siblings. The data also show that individuals with no older siblings
have an average maturity level score of 14 points.
4. The table shows the relationship between the number of siblings an individual has and
their corresponding maturity level score. The maturity level score is represented on the
vertical axis, while the number of siblings is represented on the horizontal axis.
The data in the table suggests that there is a positive correlation between the number of
siblings an individual has and their maturity level score. Individuals with no siblings have
the lowest maturity level score at 14 points. As the number of siblings increases, the
maturity level score also increases. Individuals with one sibling have an average maturity
level score of 23 points, those with two siblings have a score of 25 points, and those with
three siblings have the highest score at 26 points.

Interviews:

The qualitative data was collected on these 3 questions

 - Can you describe your experience of growing up with an older sibling/siblings?
How do you think this influenced your level of maturity?
- In your opinion as a younger sibling, what are some specific ways that having an
older brother/sister affects a younger sibling's level of maturity?

After analyzing the answers that I got from each interviewee I noticed a similarity in the two
interviewees that had an older sister and a similarity between the two interviewees that had an
older brother. For the first question interviewees that had an older sister mentioned that they
had a closer relationship with their sister and they have a closer relationship to them because
they felt nurtured and cared for. The female interviewee with an older sister said that her sister
influenced her maturity regarding her friendships while the male interviewee with an older sister
said that he felt more mature when dealing with a girlfriend compared to his other friends. On
the contrary, the interviewees that had an older brother were more distant to their sibling and
had a hate-love relationship. They both said that their older brother influenced their maturity by
bullying them into being more of a grown up. The second question had no particular pattern.
The most frequent answers were that an older sibling can help develop the younger sibling’s
maturity by showing them what being mature is and serving as a role model, by giving them
advice in difficult situations and lastly by bullying them into growing up.

Discussion:

Based on the data collected from the survey and the interviews, it can be concluded that having
siblings can positively impact an individual's level of maturity development. The quantitative data
suggests that the amount of siblings has a direct relationship with the level of maturity. The more
siblings one has the more mature they are. The data also suggests that individuals with an older
sister, no matter their gender, are on average more mature than those with an older brother.
Younger siblings with older sisters are mature to a greater extent than those who have older
brothers. Additionally, there is a positive correlation between the number of siblings and an
individual's level of maturity, with those having more siblings having higher maturity level scores.
The qualitative data suggests that the ways that older siblings impact one's maturity vary on the
gender of the older sibling. Based on the interviews conducted for this study, sisters positively
impact their younger siblings’ maturity development by serving as role models, by giving advice
and by forming deep emotional bonds with their siblings by being nurturing and caring. On the
contrary, we understand that brothers impact their younger siblings’ maturity development by
bullying and forcing their siblings to grow up. These conclusions prove my hypotheses “If an
individual has an older sibling then they grow up to be more mature than an individual that
doesn't have an older sibling. If an individual grows up with an older sister, they are more likely
to develop emotional maturity than an individual that grows up with an older brother.” completely
correct.

One limitation of this study is that the respondents of the survey and interview do not represent
a large portion of people because they are all from the same city (skopje) This may affect the
quality of conclusion because it only proves that these patterns are seen in citizens of skopje
and they can be completely different for other cities or countries. To gather more accurate
qualitative data, more people should have been interviewed in order to conclude that the
patterns we found are reliable patterns. The other limitation of this study is that by allowing
people to take the survey anonymously it risks the reliability of the answers. The answers may
be biased to make an individual look more or less mature therefore it would mess with the
reliability of the conclusion. This could have been avoided if the survey was not anonymous and
each participant would be forced to be truthful when answering the questions; however, this
would most likely make the respondents uncomfortable with answering some of the questions.
In order to address some of the limitations and shortcomings of this study, future research could
be conducted with larger and more diverse samples, using more standardized measures of
maturity level. This can answer the research question more in depth because the level of
maturity of each participant will be better recorded and also recorded among more people. This
will also allow them to more accurately define the difference between female-female,
female-male, male-female and male-male relationships regarding maturity. Another aspect that
future studies can further explore is the other factors that contribute to the maturity of individuals
such as parenting, household, individual personality, etc. By closely studying these aspects as
well, we can better see the extent that older siblings affect younger siblings emotional and social
maturity.