How Birth Order Affects Personality

Birth order has long been considered to be one of most influential things on personal characteristics.  Most of us have some, if not all, or the traits assigned to our birth position.   Obviously, that personality is influenced by our personal temperament, interests, gender, social status, etc.  But birth order has been shown to be directly correlated with how a person functions in work, home or at play.  Here’s a bit about how birth order affects our personalities.  
There are four main types of birth orders: first borns, second borns, onlys and youngests.  If you were born to a family of several children, you still probably have some of the characteristics of one of the orders above.   The following is a description of the qualities of each birth order types. 

1.   First borns.   As the first child in the family, the first born usually has a lot of responsible and expectations placed upon them. Therefore it’s no surprise that as adults, these people are usually natural leaders.  They’re very driven and responsible.  As they may have spent much of their childhood bossing around the younger children, adult first borns often love to be in control and often feel uncomfortable when they are not the master of a situation.  However, they do have a great ability to organize others and achieve any goal they put their mind to.  First borns also have a tendency toward being perfectionists, which can both help and harm them. 

2.   Second borns.  In many ways, second borns are just the opposite of first borns.   They see the oldest child as competition and often decide to react directly opposite to whatever the first born is.  Instead of being responsible, they may be trouble makers. Instead of being good leaders, they may have trouble making their own decisions. Because they may feel like the “odd man out” in the family, as adults they long to belong to a group, whether it be a work, school, or play.  Second borns desire friendship and can often be the glue that holds a relationship together.   They usually put people before anything else in life. 

3.    Onlys.  Since these people spent much of their younger years in the company of adults, it’s not surprising that these children often develop characteristics that will please their elders.   Onlys are also very driven, but in a quiet way.  They always expect the best.  They often demand that those around them raise their standards because their own are so high.   Onlys are often pampered and precocious, and may prefer their own company.  They work very well alone and for long periods of time.   Onlys aim to please and desire recognition for their success.  They tend to be secretive and don’t do well with conflict.

4.   Youngests.  These people were often spoiled as children since their parents became more lax in discipline as time passed. This is usually the favored position in the family. Youngests love challenges and often initiate activities.  As they usually did not have many responsibilities as children, these people may have difficulty finishing projects. Although they may need to strive to take like more seriously, youngests are great to have on projects because they make things more fun.  Youngests will also do anything to be noticed, be it good or bad. 

The most important thing to realize is that although you may have some characteristics of your birth order type that does not mean you must have all of them.   You may have characteristics of each different birth order.  However, it is probable that you do have some of the dominant characteristics of your birth order type.   Your temperament, interests, social situation, friends, and your own family (spouse, children, etc.) also influence your personality.