Most mothers and fathers have favourites – and that's OK. “There are going to be days when we prefer to be around one child over another, for a number of different reasons,” she says. “The important thing to remember is that having a favourite child does not mean that you love your other children less.”
Of those, four out of five (78%) insist a sibling was the favourite, not themselves. Half say their parents preferred the youngest sibling, just over a quarter (27%) the eldest and a fifth (22%) the middle child. This is similar to what parents with a preference disclosed.
“There are different reasons for this. It can be due to how proud parents are of a particular child; the closeness of their relationship with that child, as well as the degree to which that child's values align with theirs.” This may come as a surprise to some, but gender and birth order play a part, too.
Even if you don't fully recognize it, research indicates that there's a good chance that you actually do have a favorite. In fact, one study published in the Journal of Family Psychology found 74% of moms and 70% of dads reported preferential treatment toward one child.
Perceptions of favoritism can take a lasting mental toll on families, according to a 20-year study following parents and their adult children. WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Moms won't admit to it. Families rarely talk about this, but research shows that many parents do, in fact, have a favorite and least favorite child.
First-born kids tend to be leaders, like CEOS and founders, and are more likely to achieve traditional success. Middle-born children often embody a mix of the traits of older and younger siblings, and they're very relationship-focused.
Researchers have found that 74% of mothers and 70% of fathers admit to having a favourite child - and children say there is a bias towards the eldest one.... READ MORE ABOUT: Children.
Dads Prefer Sons And Moms Prefer Daughters, According To Science.
The survey concluded that parents tend to favour their youngest child over the elder.
Young girls depend on their fathers for security and emotional support. A father shows his daughter what a good relationship with a man is like. If a father is loving and gentle, his daughter will look for those qualities in men when she's old enough to begin dating.
Men desire sons for the same reasons that women desire daughters. Some men want the company of their own gender … to share male camaraderie, to do yard work together, or paint the house with, or go to ball games. In short, they want sons so they can do things they like to do.
Overall, 38 percent of Americans who are the youngest in their family report they were the favorite, compared to 27 percent of those who were oldest. Middle children are the least likely to say they were a favorite child; only 20 percent believe they were.
A recent study has found that it's not the youngest child that's liked the most. It's actually the eldest! While eldest children around the world have had to be the example for their younger siblings and parents being extra strict on them, it looks like there was a good reason.
Children in the Netherlands are among the happiest in the world, research has suggested, and experts say that there could be a number of reasons why this is the case. A UNICEF report published last year found that children in the Netherlands had the highest sense of wellbeing.
Both mothers and fathers are perceived as favoring genetically-related children. The results also suggest that the birth order of the parental favorite varies with the birth order of the participant. Firstborns and lastborns report a pattern of favoritism that suggests parents favor firstborn and lastborn children.
67 of the 69 children were said to have survived infancy. Allegedly Vassilyev also had six sets of twins and two sets of triplets with a second wife, for another 18 children in eight births; he fathered a total of 87 children. The claim is disputed as records at this time were not well kept.
Genghis Khan is known as one of the greatest warriors in the history of the world, but that is not the only thing he is known for. He is also known for being the man who had the most kids in the world. It seems that he holds the record for the most children born to one man.
The firstborn effect
They are also more likely to have higher academic abilities and levels of intelligence than their younger siblings. These qualities are believed to make firstborns more successful.
The study found that while attractive dads pass on their good looks to daughters, the sons aren't quite so lucky, the Daily Telegraph reported. Professors David Perrett and Elisabeth Cornwell, of University of St. Andrews, said a mother's beauty makes no difference to her adult sons.
They express and build trust and hence are good communicators. Moms encourage their sons to express their feelings and are quite patient to them. Compared to dads, moms are usually soft-spoken and good listeners. Moms not only nurture their children but they also take care of their homeworks, playtime and other things.
Dads may not realize it, but they don't treat their sons and daughters the same way, according to a new study. Turns out, fathers are more attentive and responsive to their young daughters' cries compared to their sons and sing more to their little girls while roughhousing with their boys.
According to an old notion, first-born children are genetically predisposed to appear more like their father. It was thought that this was done so that the father would accept the child as his and provide for and care for them. Another argument is that this would prevent him from eating the baby.
If you are a firstborn...
According to the study, the best possible match is a firstborn female with a lastborn male, because their needs are in harmony with each other. A firstborn with another firstborn, Leman writes, is likely to be a power struggle.
“Parents tend to favour a child that is most like them, reminds them of themselves, or represents what they view as a success of parenting,” she says. “Younger children are most likely to have been raised by a parent who, over time and experience, is more confident and skilled in their child-raising.”