18 Oldest, Youngest, or in the Middle?

Were you first or last in your family? Or were you a middle or only child? Some people think it matters where you were born in your family. But there are different ideas about what birth order means.

Some people say that oldest children are smart and strong-willed. They are very likely to be successful. The reason for this is simple. Parents have a lot of time for their first child. They give him or her a lot of attention. So this child is very likely to do well. An only child will succeed for the same reason. Middle children don’t get so much attention. So they the other children in a family. It’s a family has many children, the middle ones sometimes don’t feel that important. The youngest child, though, gets special treatment. He or she is the “baby.” Often this child grows up to be funny and charming.

Do you believe these ideas about birth order? A recent study saw things quite differently. This study found that first children believed in family rules. They didn’t take many chances in their lives. They usually followed orders. Rules didn’t mean so much to later children in a family. They went out and followed their own ideas. They took chances. And they often did better in life.

你是家里的第一个孩子还是最后一个？或者你是中间的孩子还是独生子女？有些人认为你在家庭中的出生顺序很重要。但关于出生顺序意味着什么，有不同的看法。

有些人说，长子/长女聪明且意志坚定，他们很可能会成功。原因很简单，父母对第一个孩子有很多时间，会给予他或她很多关注，所以这个孩子很可能会表现得很好。独生子女也会因为同样的原因成功。中间的孩子得不到那么多关注，所以他们在家庭中……（按原文呈现）。如果一个家庭有很多孩子，中间的孩子有时会觉得自己没那么重要。不过，最小的孩子会得到特殊对待，他或她是“宝贝”。通常这个孩子长大后会变得风趣迷人。

你相信这些关于出生顺序的说法吗？最近的一项研究看法完全不同。这项研究发现，长子/长女信奉家庭规则，他们在生活中不太愿意冒险，通常会服从命令。对于家庭中较晚出生的孩子来说，规则没那么重要。他们会外出追寻自己的想法，敢于冒险，而且往往在生活中表现得更好。