D
Deleted member 58
Guest
- Thread Author
- #1
Having a larger number of older brothers had a greater association with low stress resilience than having older sisters. One of the reasons we looked at sex of siblings is there is separate research from Italy showing that working mothers were more likely to suffer from heart disease if they had sons rather than daughters.
While socioeconomic characteristics could partially explain the effect (bigger families are more likely to experience socioeconomic disadvantage), there was still a significant association with siblings after taking this and other factors into account. Having older siblings, particularly older brothers, was also associated with lower cognitive function test scores, but this might be expected as lower stress resilience is linked with lower cognitive function.
Why might this be? We suggest older children may have greater access to family resources including parental attention. Also, older brothers may be in the most dominant position and therefore more able to bully their younger siblings – who may then perceive their environment as more threatening. That, we think, may have implications for their stress resilience. These exposures could potentially influence development through both psychological and neuroendocrine pathways.
While socioeconomic characteristics could partially explain the effect (bigger families are more likely to experience socioeconomic disadvantage), there was still a significant association with siblings after taking this and other factors into account. Having older siblings, particularly older brothers, was also associated with lower cognitive function test scores, but this might be expected as lower stress resilience is linked with lower cognitive function.
Why might this be? We suggest older children may have greater access to family resources including parental attention. Also, older brothers may be in the most dominant position and therefore more able to bully their younger siblings – who may then perceive their environment as more threatening. That, we think, may have implications for their stress resilience. These exposures could potentially influence development through both psychological and neuroendocrine pathways.
