Sibling relationships in families of children with disabilities are generally positive despite difficulties that may result from the child’s disability. Many developmental disabilities have associated communication impairments that could affect how siblings interact with each other and the closeness between them. Research has rarely addressed the role of communication skills and how potential deficits in communication may impact the sibling relationship. The purpose of this study is to examine the characteristics of sibling communication interaction patterns when one sibling has a developmental disability and the unique role that communication skills play in the quality of the sibling relationship using both self-report and observational measures. Participants were 30 mixed and same-sex sibling dyads that included one typically developing sibling and their brother or sister with an identified developmental disability. Using parent report, children with disabilities were placed into three communication status groups according to their communication skills: emerging communicators, context-dependent communicators and independent communicators. Results indicated that when children with disabilities were independent communicators, they exhibited interactions with their siblings that were similar in terms of lexical complexity but that regardless of communication status, typically developing siblings dominated the interaction. All three communication groups differed significantly on measures of relative status/power with siblings of children who were independent communicators reporting highest levels of relative status/power. Additionally, receptive vocabulary was a significant predictor of relative status/power and proportion of intelligible utterances was a significant predictor of rivalry. Finally, although typical siblings acknowledged that their relationship would be different if their sibling with a disability had different communication skills, it did not lessen the importance of that sibling in their life. As a whole, these results represent a first step in understanding the unique role of communication skills in the sibling relationship for families of children with disabilities. It established that when children are grouped together according to their communication abilities, findings regarding relative status/power are different than what would be expected based on literature. Communication and language skills are important variables to add to the literature to further elucidate the sibling experience in families of children with disabilities.

Compared to their uninfected peers, youth living with HIV experience greater distress related to a multitude of stressors they face. In order to enhance the lives of youth who are living with HIV, it is important to identify the personal and social resources that these individuals might bring to coping with their disease. Using the compensatory hypothesis and resiliency theory as conceptual frameworks, the present study examined the function of both psychological acceptance and sibling relationships for youths in managing depression and HIV-related stigma. In addition, the current study investigated the interactive effects of psychological acceptance and sibling relationship quality on these outcomes for youths living with HIV. The participants for the current study included 68 youth who were recruited as part of another study examining adolescents infected with HIV and their caregivers. The racial composition of the final sample consisted of 94% African Americans and 6 % who identified as another racial minority. The current sample consisted of 28 males, 38 females, and 2 transgendered youth between the ages of 12 and 23 (M= 17.9, SD= 2.8). In the sample, 56% of youth were perinatally infected and 44% were behaviorally infected. Regression analyses indicated no support for the complex associations among resources posited in the resiliency model and the compensatory hypothesis. Greater psychological acceptance was associated with both less depression and less stigma. Both the positive and negative aspects of sibling relationships demonstrated importance for youth’s psychological well-being, such that supportive sibling relationships were associated with lower depression and negative sibling relationships were associated with greater perceived stigma. Exploratory analyses demonstrated interactions with gender, age, and route of transmission not explained by the proposed models, which suggests that further research is needed to understand their impact. Future research endeavors should examine the efficacy of intervention programs in individual and group settings to determine if the predicted benefit of both personal and social resources are compounding factors in the psychosocial well-being for youth living with HIV.

Sibling relationships in families of children with disabilities are generally positive despite difficulties that may result from the child’s disability. Many developmental disabilities have associated communication impairments that could affect how siblings interact with each other and the closeness between them. Research has rarely addressed the role of communication skills and how potential deficits in communication may impact the sibling relationship. The purpose of this study is to examine the characteristics of sibling communication interaction patterns when one sibling has a developmental disability and the unique role that communication skills play in the quality of the sibling relationship using both self-report and observational measures. Participants were 30 mixed and same-sex sibling dyads that included one typically developing sibling and their brother or sister with an identified developmental disability. Using parent report, children with disabilities were placed into three communication status groups according to their communication skills: emerging communicators, context-dependent communicators and independent communicators. Results indicated that when children with disabilities were independent communicators, they exhibited interactions with their siblings that were similar in terms of lexical complexity but that regardless of communication status, typically developing siblings dominated the interaction. All three communication groups differed significantly on measures of relative status/power with siblings of children who were independent communicators reporting highest levels of relative status/power. Additionally, receptive vocabulary was a significant predictor of relative status/power and proportion of intelligible utterances was a significant predictor of rivalry. Finally, although typical siblings acknowledged that their relationship would be different if their sibling with a disability had different communication skills, it did not lessen the importance of that sibling in their life. As a whole, these results represent a first step in understanding the unique role of communication skills in the sibling relationship for families of children with disabilities. It established that when children are grouped together according to their communication abilities, findings regarding relative status/power are different than what would be expected based on literature. Communication and language skills are important variables to add to the literature to further elucidate the sibling experience in families of children with disabilities.

Acculturation and enculturation processes and sibling relationship quality are important constructs for understanding the psychosocial wellbeing of immigrant adolescents. In this thesis, I used a mixed-method approach to (a) understand how similar or different siblings’ cultural orientations are, (b) the role siblings may play in shaping one another’s cultural orientation, and (c) how changes in cultural orientation are related to sibling relationship quality. Quantitative data were collected from 31 adolescent sibling dyads at two time points, and qualitative data were collected from individual interviews with 16 young adults. Participants in both samples identified as having a Chinese cultural background and immigrated to Canada with their family before the age of 14. The results of the qualitative interviews suggested that siblings often perceived themselves as culturally similar, although the quantitative data were not congruent with that view. There was ample evidence that siblings influence one another’s cultural profiles. For example, in the quantitative data, higher cultural involvement by one sibling, especially in the Canadian dimension, predicted decreases in the other sibling’s involvement in that same domain 18 months later. These patterns were corroborated with themes derived through the interviews. The thematic analyses identified five factors that fostered similarities and differences in the cultural profiles of immigrant siblings, as well as four themes describing the perceived effects of being similar or different. The qualitative findings suggested that there are few cultural conflicts among siblings. Instead, siblings act as cultural mediators in parent-child conflicts, and they are in a unique position to understand and support each other. This study provided preliminary insight into how similar or different Chinese immigrant siblings are in a Canadian metropolitan context. Overall, the findings illustrate ways in which siblings play an important role in the family by supporting one another in adjusting to life in Canada. / Graduate

The objective of this study was to describe the experiences of hearing children as they cope with having a sibling with deafness. From a constructivist point of view, this research process is seen as socially constructing a reality or realities, with the researcher included in, rather than outside the borders of his or her own research. Semi-structured and unstructured interviews were conducted with the subjects. These interviews were aimed at obtaining information regarding the subject’s experience of the stressor of having a sibling with deafness. The participants reported limited family interaction. Although most siblings say that they have good relationships with their siblings with deafness, their primary feelings indicate that there are aspects of having a sibling with deafness that can be challenging. The participants described experiencing a variety of feelings which include the following: frustration, loneliness, anger, affection, resentment and pity. The results of this study have shown that the siblings of children with deafness, need more professional support in terms of coping with the disability and its consequences. Siblings need guidance on active coping responses in coping with the stressor of having a sibling with deafness. / Dissertation (Magister Artium (Counselling Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Psychology / unrestricted

Existing research concerning the effects of empathy development has primarily focused on the role of parents, culture, and education but has overlooked the role of siblings. This current retrospective study investigates sibling relationship quality and cognitive and affective empathy in young adults to address the question of whether siblings influence young adults’ empathy processes. A total of 205 young adults participated in the study and completed questionnaires examining their sibling relationship quality and empathy. Strong positive relationships were observed between affective empathy and sibling relationship quality, which suggests that siblings may play a unique role in shaping each other’s affective empathy development. Young adults with a sibling who made a positive impact on them had higher sibling relationship quality and affective empathy scores. Additionally, female participants showed higher affective empathy and quality relationship with their siblings than male participants.

<p>Caring for older family members has become a focus of national attention among policy makers given concerns for the quality of life of both caregivers and care recipients. Although caregivers’ siblings often represent important ties for both the adult children providing care and parents receiving care, there has been limited attention to how siblings affect one another’s well-being during parent care. Guided by theories of identity and stress, the central aims of this dissertation are to investigate: (1) Whether perceiving care-related criticism from siblings is associated with higher depressive symptoms among adult children providing care to their mother; and (2) whether caregivers’ gender and the gender composition of the sibling networks in which they are embedded influence caregivers’ probability of perceiving care-related criticism from siblings. To achieve these aims, I utilize both quantitative and qualitative data collected from adult children providing care to their mothers as part of the Within-Family Differences Study-II. This mixed-methods approach enables me to not only examine statistical relationships, but also to identify mechanisms underlying these statistical patterns.</p><p>Quantitative analyses revealed that perceived care-related criticism from siblings was not directly associated with caregivers’ depressive symptoms, but rather operated through its association with sibling tension. Consistent with theories of identity maintenance, qualitative analyses suggested that, in response to their siblings’ criticisms, caregivers often reacted in ways that may have been protective for their identity as a “good caregiver,” but that could have been a catalyst for sibling conflict and, in turn, psychological distress. Once perceived sibling criticism was established as a stressor with detrimental consequences for caregivers’ relational and psychological well-being, I then explored whether caregivers’ gender, as well as the genders of their siblings, shape caregivers’ probability of perceiving sibling criticism. As I anticipated based on theories of gender and group dynamics, daughters’ probability of perceiving sibling criticism depended on the gender composition of the sibling networks in which they were embedded; in particular, daughters in predominantly-son families had a notably lower risk of perceiving care-related criticism than daughters in families with a higher proportion of daughters. Consistent with theories of tokenism, qualitative data revealed that adult children in families with a higher proportion of daughters were less able to rely solely on gender stereotypes to shape caregiving expectations. As a result, there tended to be less consensus among siblings regarding who best understood their mother’s care needs and preferences, and higher rates of perceived sibling criticism among daughters.</p><p>Taken together, these findings demonstrate the influence that identity processes, as well as the sibling networks in which caregiving takes place, have in shaping the experiences and consequences of parent care. This work demonstrates the value of utilizing a mixed-methods approach to gain a nuanced understanding of complex family processes. In addition, these findings offer valuable insights to health care professionals and other stakeholders who interact with and serve family caregivers. By understanding the mechanisms through which sibling context may contribute to psychological distress among caregivers, these stakeholders will be better prepared to identify and address caregivers’ socio-emotional needs.</p>

Objective: To examine whether caregiver burden, parenting style, and sibling relationships in families raising a child with a disability (CWD) predict cooperative and externalizing behaviors in typically-developing sibling (TDS). Methods: This correlational study included 189 families raising both a CWD and a TDS. Mothers and fathers completed self-report questionnaires on caregiver burden, sibling relationships, parenting style, and TDS cooperative and externalizing behaviors. Results: Authoritative parenting was positively associated with cooperative behaviors, whereas authoritarian parenting was positively associated with externalizing behaviors. Hierarchical regression revealed caregiver burden was a significant predictor of cooperative and externalizing behaviors; however, when parenting style was added as a predictor, it was also significant. However, when sibling relationships were added as a predictor, they were the only consistently significant predictor for both cooperative and externalizing TDS behaviors; caregiver burden was no longer significant and parenting style was only significant in predicting externalizing behaviors. Conclusion: Positive sibling relationships may help negate the effects of caregiver burden and poor parenting practices on sibling outcomes. Therefore, interventions improving parenting and sibling relationships are critical in families raising a CWD.

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