Birth order and the middle child personality traits

Some people doubt that birth order can have an effect on personality. The main argument those people depend on is that not all children who belong to the same birth order have the same personality traits.

For example a common middle child usually lacks self esteem but the presence of many middle children who have a good level of self confidence helps those people challenge this theory.

The one factor that those people didn't take into consideration is that many other factors including the coping style of the child, the parenting style of his parents in addition to his birth order determines his personality and not just his birth order.

That's why a middle child who learned how to face problems could develop personality traits such as courage and confidence while a middle child who learned how to run from problems will become shy and withdrawn.

Middle child personality traits

The elder child usually develops leadership abilities because his parents always assign him the task of taking care of his younger siblings. The Youngest child finds himself spoiled because of the excessive attention he gets from his parents.

Now the challenge that the middle child faces is that he finds himself squeezed between two other siblings who get most of the attention.

As a result of this situation the middle child might develop these personality traits:

Low self esteem: If the middle child didn't learn how to cope with that situation he will develop low self esteem and become socially withdrawn because of believing that there is something wrong with him
Shyness: The middle child might develop a personality trait such as shyness if he felt overlooked. Many people look at shyness superficially without understanding that its usually an indication of the person's low estimation of his self worth. As a result of not getting enough attention the middle child might think that he is inferior and so develop shyness. (see Shyness in children)
Middle children are diplomats: Middle children usually become diplomats and peace makers who help the youngest and the eldest get along. In some cases The middle child might develop excessive jealousy of his siblings and then grow up thinking that he is not loved or overlooked (see Jealousy between siblings)
Middle children can become problem children: If the middle child started becoming rebellious against the lack of attention he might turn into a problem child. Many people don't understand that the personality traits problem children develop result from the need of attention that they crave for.

The middle child syndrome

Because of the little attention he gets the middle child might start to think that he is not worthy of being loved which is otherwise known as the middle child syndrome.

This feeling results in many problems that the middle child faces in his future because he always doubts whether people want him or not.

In my article How birth order affects marriage and relationships i explained how A typical middle child might always question the love of his partner in a relationship as a result of feeling unloved.

Can the personality traits of middle children be changed?

In my article Can personality change I said that our childhood experiences shapes our personalities and determines who we are, however, the good news is that individual psychology which is my field of expertize is based upon the fact that whatever was learned in childhood can be unlearned in adulthood.

If you have some of the middle child personality traits that i just mentioned and if you feel bad about them then know that you can certainly change them if you knew how to take the right steps.

Personality analysis and psychology describe the final personality traits the person has reached but this doesn't mean that there is no more room for additional changes.

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Want to know more?

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How parenting affects the child's personality

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