The Effects of Sibling Comparison Experience and Birth Order on Self-actualization

Abstract

　　The purpose of this paper is how birth order and child cognition of sibling comparison effect on self-actualization.

　　Over the past few decades a considerable number of studies have been made on the relationship between birth order and personality difference.

　　But only few attempts have so far been made on the relationship between birth order and self-actualization.

　　Thus, our concerned is to consider the relationship between self-actualization and sibling comparison experience, which is how the child recognized the parents’ comparison based on birth order.

　　We assume that the sibling comparison experience makes one’s sibling role more concious and it leads to the difference of degree of self-actualization.

　　Another assumption is that sex difference influences on the degree of self-actualization.

　　The following results were obtained: experience of comparison influences positively on the first-born girl and negatively on nonfirst-born girl and on boy in general. That is to say, in sibling comparison, the first-born child feels the comparison experience more advantageous and more positively than nonfirst-born child does.

　　In sex comparison, the comparison experience increases the degree of self-acceptance and independence especially for first-born girl.

　　On the other hand, overcomparison decreases the degree of self-acceptance and independence for first-born boy.