The impact of birth order on language development has gained significant traction over the years, with contradictory evidence suggesting that lower birth order may hinder language development in typically-developing children (Nafissi and Vosoughi, 2015). However, results also suggest that when considering measures of social communication, second-born typically-developing children demonstrate a significant advantage (Kheirkhah and Cekaite, 2018). These findings have interesting ramifications when considering autistic children, as language impairments are characteristic of the disorder. The current study investigated the impact of birth order, in particular having an older, typically-developing sibling, on vocabulary and social language development in autistic youth. Participants included 1338 first-borns and 1049 second-borns (M age = 9.03 years, SD = 3.57; 86.4% male) with diagnoses of Autistic disorder, Aspergers, or PDD-NOS from the Simons Simplex Collection (Fischbach and Lord, 2010). Results indicated no significant differences in vocabulary or social language between first-borns and second-borns. Hierarchical linear regressions indicated no significant main effect of birth order; however, significant 2-way interactions with birth order x income and birth order x age predicted expressive vocabulary and inappropriate speech. Post-hoc simple slopes suggested that birth order may have a greater impact on language in younger autistic children, and lower-income families. This is the first work to date to investigate birth order and contextual factors on expressive language outcomes in autistic youth. / Doctor of Philosophy / Families provide an important context for important developmental milestones, such as language development (e.g., first words, firs phrases). Many parents and previous literature suggest that occasionally, older siblings can "speak on behalf" of their younger siblings, which reduces the number of opportunities second-born children have to practice important language skills. Previous literature in the field suggests that first-born siblings demonstrate stronger language skills when considering vocabulary, but that second-born siblings demonstrate stronger social language skills. The current dissertation evaluated these birth order findings in a clinical group of children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), as language differences are key features of the disorder. Using a large, representative data set from the Simon Simplex Collection, nearly 3,000 youth with ASD were evaluated on vocabulary and social language skills, grouped by birth order status. Group comparisons suggested that there were no significant differences between first-borns and second-borns in vocabulary and language. When evaluating what factors predicted vocabulary and language, birth order was also not significant. However, some interaction effects emerged between birth order and income, suggesting that in lower-income families, birth order may make a meaningful difference in vocabulary and social language. This is the first work to evaluate the role of siblings on language in ASD, and has important implications for interventions, especially for lower-income families impacted by ASD.

Findings related to the adjustment of typically-developing (TD) siblings of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have been inconsistent, but suggest that most function well over time. The current mixed methods study investigated the relationship between family factors, especially disruptions to family routines, and academic functioning of TD siblings. Measures of family functioning, parenting stress, and parenting daily hassles were collected from parents (n = 20); an additional 19 families also completed semi-structured interviews (total n = 39). Teacher reports on classroom functioning (n = 25) and report cards were also collected. All parent participants (92% Caucasian, 90% married, 79% college-educated) had a child with an ASD diagnosis (80% male, M age = 11.74) and a TD child (62% male, M age = 10.31 years). Seventy-two percent of TD siblings (n = 18) had scores above the mean on the Academic Performance Rating Scale (DuPaul, Rapport, and Perriello, 1991), and 91% (n = 32) had grade averages of B or higher. Ninety-six percent (n = 24) of TD siblings had scores within the normative range on the Learning Problems and School Problems scales of the Behavior Assessment System for Children, Second Edition (BASC-2; Reynolds and Kamphaus, 2004). Daily hassles were not significantly correlated with any school measures for the TD siblings. Families with children with more severe ASD symptoms discussed greater frequencies of emotional outbursts in the child with ASD and missed social opportunities as a family. Families of children with externalizing behaviors may particularly benefit from targeted support. / Ph. D.

The purpose of this study was to contribute to a more complete understanding of the family inheritance experience by exploring the perspectives of beneficiaries. This qualitative study aimed to describe and discuss how individuals' sibling relationships were impacted following the distribution process of an inheritance that was intended to be equally distributed. Eight individuals participated in semi-structured interviews, with areas of inquiry covering perceptions of challenges and benefits of the distribution process, fairness of the outcome of distribution among siblings, and the impact the process has had on their sibling relationships. The data was analyzed using transcendental phenomenology. Findings suggest families experience varying degrees of conflict during inheritance distributions, but not all conflict was devastating to the relationships following the distributions. Specific relational aspects were identified in contributing to the level of satisfaction of the distribution, which subsequently affected their relationships afterward. Additionally, the handling of conflict and efforts to repair relational strains significantly contribute to relational outcomes following the distribution. The majority of participants reported stronger relationships following the inheritance distribution. The findings provide a foundation for further research to explore beneficiary's experiences of receiving an inheritance within multi-child families. / Master of Science

College and university administrators are interested in the development of their students. Developmental theorists, such as Chickering (1969), provide a lens through which to view developmental task, and issues facing those tasks. One influence on development is friendship and student communities including siblings. This study expanded the available knowledge based on siblings in general, and addresses gaps in the literature by looking at sense of competence among siblings in college. The purpose of this study is to explore the sense of competence between older and younger siblings who were both college students at the same institution during an overlapping period of time. As defined by Arthur W. Chickering (1969), sense of competence is a feeling of self-confidence about one's interpersonal and intellectual skills. The intellectual and interpersonal competence of students were evaluated through the Sense of Competence Scale (SCS) (Janosik, Creamer & Cross, 1987). The SCS consists of 20 questions that focus on the interpersonal or interpersonal skills of the respondents. Ten items from the SCS are assigned to the interpersonal competence subscale, and 10 items from the SCS are assigned to the intellectual competence subscale. I created a web-based version of the SCS to collect data from college students who had a sibling at the same college with them simultaneously. The population for this study consists of participants who are one of at least two non-twin siblings who are enrolled at the same institution of higher education at the time of data collection. Data was collected from three institutions located in the southwest region of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The research found no statistically significant differences in the intellectual and interpersonal competency between older and younger siblings. Although the study examined a limited number of siblings, the results did not contradict the current research on sibling relationships, which suggests that older siblings demonstrate higher intellectual competence and younger siblings demonstrate higher interpersonal competence. / Master of Arts

This study explores the notion of racial empathy and whether or not the nonadopted white siblings in transracially adoptive families develop the ability to empathize within the context of race. Specifically, I look at the following three questions: Do white siblings who have black adopted siblings develop racial empathy – the ability for one to personally identify with racially sensitive issues that affect persons of a separate racial category – toward blacks outside of their family by virtue of their interactions with the adoptee? What are the different dimensions of racial empathy? How is racial empathy displayed at each dimension? Participants are interviewed in-depth about their experiences being reared with black siblings. Ten out of 15 participants developed racial empathy in at least one dimension by virtue of having black adopted siblings. This is a limited sample (e.g. gender, class, religious affiliation) and the findings cannot be extrapolated; however, these findings suggest that further research needs to be conducted on racial empathy, as well as the nonadopted white siblings.

(in English) Thesis deals with biological children of parents, who have other kids in foster care. These kids are often neglected. In the theoretical part are described and defined terms such as a substitute foster family and its forms, family, siblings. It focuses also on selected foreing researches and contemporary Czech works on this topic. Practical part contains analyzes of interviews with respondents. The main aim was to find out what biological children of their parents in general think of foster care. How they perceive the situation in their own family and how it affects them.

The purpose of this study was to understand the effects of pediatric bipolar disorder on child siblings. A quantitative quasi-experimental research design was used. According to family systems theory, which was used in the formation of this study, all family members are interconnected and affect each other in a variety of ways. The research questions investigated whether children demonstrated more emotional dysregulation and fewer adaptive skills when a bipolar sibling was living in the home than when there was no bipolar sibling. The matched comparison study used 2 groups of children: those with bipolar siblings and those without bipolar siblings. Parents completed the BASC-2 Parent Rating Scale in order to measure adaptive skills and emotional dysregulation in their non-bipolar children. Parents were recruited via social media parent support sites. Thirty-four families included in the study group had 1 bipolar child and at least 1 nonbipolar child living in the home; 31 families in the comparison group had no bipolar children. All children were under the age of 18, living together full time, had a biological or legal relationship, and did not have any other mental health diagnosis. A multivariate analysis of variance was used to test the hypotheses. The study found that children with bipolar siblings demonstrated significantly higher levels of emotional dysregulation (both externalization and internalization) than did children without bipolar siblings. There was no significant difference in reported adaptive skills between the 2 groups of children. This study has social change implications as it identifies the emotional needs of sibling children who are routinely overlooked as needing assistance. This study provides the groundwork for clinicians and educators working in the pediatric mental health field to begin exploring potential treatments and programs for siblings of bipolar children.

No description available.

Pulling from the foundations of research on social support and resilience indicating that those who receive extensive social support are more resilient, this research, consisting of two studies, primarily examined the differences between individuals who are only children and individuals who have siblings in their formation of social support networks. While it is true that only children inherently have less immediate kin available, this research explored the formation of relationships in which non-kin come to be psychologically considered as kin, or psychological kinship. In Study 1, qualitative interviews were conducted in order to develop a working Kinship scale. Study 2, an online study conducted with 480 English-speaking adults, assessed self-reported resilience, social support, and experiences of psychological kinship. Contrary to original hypotheses, results indicated that while only children did not match people with siblings in their levels of social support and resilience, they did report experiencing equal amounts of psychological kinship. Overall, psychological kin relationships appear to be an important aspect of social support networks and therefore meaningfully contribute to one’s resiliency.

Bakgrund: I Sverige insjuknar ungefär ett barn om dagen i någon form av cancer. Cancer beror på att ett fel uppstår i en cell och den sjuka förändrade cellen växer och delar sig ohämmat, vilket bildar en tumör. Föräldrar och syskon påverkas fysiskt och psykiskt när ett barn i familjen blir allvarligt sjukt. Sjuksköterskan har ansvar för vårdandet av patienten och de närstående samt bör se dem som en helhet i omvårdnaden.  Syfte: Syftet var att beskriva föräldrars och syskons erfarenheter och upplevelser av att ha ett barn i familjen med diagnosen cancer. Vidare var syftet att beskriva de valda artiklarnas datainsamlingsmetod. Metod: En litteraturstudie med beskrivande design bestående av 14 vetenskapliga artiklar.    Huvudresultat: I resultatet beskrivs det att hela familjen påverkades känslomässigt, fysiskt och psykiskt när ett barn i familjen har diagnosen cancer. I längden började föräldrarna omvärdera vad som var viktigt i deras liv och kände hopp inför framtiden. Syskonen beskrev situationen som att förlora sin familj och kände ett behov av att få stöd. I längden kom dock hela familjen närmare varandra.   Slutsats: Hela familjen påverkades psykiskt och fysiskt när ett barn i familjen har diagnosen cancer. För att ge stöd till föräldrarna kan sjuksköterskan låta de vara delaktiga i vården och reflektera över känslor samt finnas som ett fysiskt och psykiskt stöd. För syskonen kan sjuksköterskan ge stöd genom att skapa en rutin för att göra dem delaktiga, ge möjlighet att uttrycka känslor samt skapa en trygghet. / Background: About one child a day in Sweden get diagnosed with cancer. Cancer is an illness that’s affecting the cells, the cells that are affected is growing too fast and splits uncontrollably to form a tumor. When a child is seriously ill both parents and siblings was affected mentally and physically. The nurse has the responsibility for the treatment of the patient and the patients family, and should see them as an entirety.   Aim: The aim of this study was to describe the experiences of the parents and siblings when a child in the family has cancer. Also the aim was to explain the research methods in the articles chosen for this study.   Method: The method was a literature research describing 14 scientific articles.     Main Results: In the result it is explained how the family is emotionally, physically and mentally influenced when a child in the family is diagnosed with cancer. By the course of time the parents started to revaluate the –most important things in their lives and felt more hope for the future. The siblings described the situation as to lose their family and felt the need for support. But eventually the family felt closer to each other.   Conclusion: When a child is diagnosed with cancer the whole family gets influenced by it both physically and mentally. To support the parents the nurse could let them be a part of the treatment, let them think over the feelings that may develop and to be there both mentally and physically. The nurse can also be supportive for the siblings of the cancer diagnosed child by creating a routine to help them participate in the treatment and make an environment that feels safe so they can express their feelings.