The Birth Order Theory

The Birth Order Effect Many scientists and psychologists believe that the chronological order of births in a family can influence each person’s personality, due to the environment they are raised in. The birth order theory divides the children in the family as being first-born, the middle child, last born, and an only child, and each of these categories has many character traits established. For example, middle children are usually considered to be good negotiators because they have dealt with the oldest and youngest siblings fighting all of their life. This study also has its exceptions. If a person is not the first-born in a family, but that person is the first girl, she may have characteristics of a first-born child, and that’s an example

We first-borns are perfectionists, consequently, we feel the pressure to be the best. I always felt like I had to set an example for my younger sister. I wanted her to look up to me with pride, so ever since I was little I tried to be good to my parents, teachers, and friends. I dedicated myself to everything I did, like school and sports. I gave it all my best effort so I could inspire my sister to do the same. A big concern I have is my image. I judge myself in everything I do. I have social media just like any other teenager, but what people don’t know is how long I spend taking pictures over and over again until I finally like one. And it doesn’t stop there! I also take days to decide if they are good enough to be posted. Another example is trying new dance moves. I have been a ballerina ever since age two, but every time we had to learn a new skill, I wanted to try it on my own first. If I judged that it wasn’t good enough, I wouldn’t do it in front of other people. I believe that one of the reasons first-borns are self-critical is because we are afraid to

To stay motivated I like to set very high goals for myself, and all of my objectives are more than what I need to achieve. For example, I have a current goal of being on the President’s Honor Roll, and to achieve that, I need to maintain all A grades in the semester. Dancing is another example of how I can be an overachiever. Ever since I first started ballet, I have always studied through the Royal Academy of Dance methods, and at the end of every year, a dance instructor from London would come to Brazil to evaluate each student, and give us a grade that would decide if we can move on to the next level. On evaluation day, all of the students had to wear matching black leotards, and perform the same combos and skills. We started getting ready for these tests in the beginning of the year, so we had time to learn our routines, but the dances we needed to learn can also be found on YouTube. As an overachiever, I would always work outside my ballet classes with the videos, so by February, I would already be prepared for my examination that wouldn’t happen until December. Being an overachiever is a positive quality of being the oldest child because it helps us avoid procrastination, but at the same time, all this dedication can be very