2019-09-01 Reader\'s Digest

disproportionately do) and youngest

kids may grow up to be comedians

(they disproportionately do), people

tend to recognize and agree with

personality traits that seem to be tai-

lored specifically for them, even when

they’re general enough to apply to a

large group. (If you’re told that, say,

redheads are “nice, but occasionally

stubborn” you’ll agree if you’re a red-

head, even though that could really

describe anyone.)

The best counterargument in favor

of birth order’s importance is that it

helps explain—along with genetics—

why siblings can be so different from

one another. After all, siblings are gen-

erally exposed to the same develop-

mental conditions, whether parental,

geographic, or economic. The only

obvious variances in siblings are gen-

der and birth order.

Donald Trump is a middle child.

He’s the fourth of five children, and

the second-born son. And while he

shares the middle child’s procliv-

ity for negotiation, here’s the catch:

Trump, a CEO and now president—

roles we might expect to see filled by

an eldest child—is what’s referred to

by psychologists as “functionally first-

born,” meaning the particular circum-

stances of his family may have shaped

him like a firstborn son. In his case,

Trump’s older brother died prema-

turely from alcoholism. In such situ-

ations, some psychologists posit, the

second-born son assumes the mantle

of the first, stepping up to seek the pa-

rental approval he was initially denied.

B

irth-order theory suggests

that, because they aren’t bur-

dened by excessive expectation

(like the firstborn) nor excessive at-

tention (like the last-born), middle-

borns are uniquely poised to succeed.

They are skilled diplomats by virtue

of being stuck between two siblings.

They’re portrayed as loyal romantic

partners and friends because they

are both hungry for intimate bonds

and willing to compromise to main-

tain relationships. And they’re be-

lieved to be natural innovators, since

they’re less likely to feel the weight of

parental expectation. (Bill Gates is the

middle child of a prominent lawyer.

FAMOUS MIDDLE CHILDREN

Jennifer

Lopez

Donald

Trump

Bill

Gates

Jennifer

Garner

Nelson

Mandela

Warren

Buffett

106 september 2019

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