Interrelations between IQ and Birth Order - Essay Example

? Intelligent Quotient (IQ) refers to a measure of an individual’s intelligence/cognitive abilities in handling issues and situation that they come across in life. Previously IQ levels were established through the multiplication of the chronological years/Mental age by one hundred. This has changed though in the last fifty years or so. In the contemporary world, the IQ level of a person is established through the application of standardized tests and then calculating the scores to establish the level. On the other hand Birth order refers to the age order of an individual in a family amongst their siblings. A critical analysis of studies made independently in four different states/regions on IQ and birth order has indicated a relation between the two. More so a number of the researchers contend that one’s psychological development is affected by the family size and it’s well manifested even in later stages in life. In?uence of birth order on the character traits individuals The personality of individuals is affected by among other things their birth order in their families. Conducting a study among 361 siblings from diverse family backgrounds (Melissa.M. 2007) found out that birth order has an influence in the personality traits of an individual in a family. Writing a report on their study findings they concluded that age as a signi?cant effect on extraversion with younger siblings being more extraverted than the older ones. Closely related to this assertion, are the findings of Ernst and Angst (1983), writing on younger siblings being more extraverted in terms of sociability compared to older siblings. On his part (Sulloway, 1996), alludes that if siblings are to employ their character so as to seek favors from their parents, then parental investment, is increased in extraversion in the younger kids in the family. This in turn leads to competition for attention by the siblings, thus causing siblings rivalry. This amplified extraversion amongst the young siblings protects them from their older siblings hence they are able to assert themselves with much ease. Ahmed M. Al-Khalek and, Richard Lynn (2007) from the University of Kuwait also conducted a study on Intelligence, family size and birth order on about 4643 individuals and also mentioned a correlation between I.Q and the birth order of an individual in their families. Discussing the findings of the study, they realized that children in larger families were more likely to have lower IQs than those from smaller families. However, this finding is in conflict with Zajonc’s con?uence theory and Blake’s dilution theory that expects the relationship between family size and intelligence to apply uniformly across all human societies. In addition to this, there was no prove found to support the earlier findings from United States and Europe,that birth order affects the IQ levels of children, where older siblings tend to have higher IQs than the younger ones. It did confirm that there was a positive association between birth order for ages that are below eleven years. Ahmed M. Al-Khalek and, Richard Lynn (2007) also found out there is very minimal effect on an individual’s intelligence and the attention they receive from their parents as whether younger or older than their siblings. Results indicated a very high probability of relationship between family size and intelligence as most intelligent couples had a smaller number of children (Lynn, 1996). It’s also probable that older siblings tend to have relatively lower IQs than their younger siblings, a fact that could be attributed to the age of the parents that could also have an effect on their kids. Closely related to this, is the fact that elder mothers are at higher risk of giving birth to babies that have less weight. This condition is often associated with lower intelligent levels. This confirms an earlier assertion by Aliya, Jolly, Ehiri, and Salihu (2005)who confirmed a relationship between later births and the consequent outcomes associated with the same. Matthew D. Healey and Bruce J. Ellis, 2006 conducted a study on Birth order, conscientiousness, and openness to experience. They compared the differences evident between firstborn and second born siblings against their personality traits, with a keen interest on an earlier assertion by Sulloway’s that the character of an individual is influenced by the sibling’s effort to acquire parental attention. From the study, they found out that firstborns scored significantly higher than their second born siblings on Conscientiousness, whereas firstborns scored significantly lower than their second born. Different from what Beer and Horn’s (2000) had offered as a scientific explanation for birth-order effects on personality, for both explanation for birth-order effects on personality, for both Conscientiousness and Openness to Experience the findings showed out that the effects were more engraved for girl-girl than boy-boy. Donna Spiker,Linda J. Lotspeich,Sue Dimiceli,Peter Szatmari,Richard M. Myers,and Neil Risch Lord (1992) writing on Birth Order Effects on Nonverbal IQ Scores on 144 complex families displayed a declining nonverbal IQ score in an increasing birth order. Older siblings appeared to have higher nonverbal IQ scores than their younger siblings. Despite this, there was no relation between gender and IQ, or gender interaction with birth order. Second born children showed a negative correlation with autism in autism complex families. Consequently, they concluded that effect of birth order on nonverbal IQ scores, was not based on age but rather on the intensity of the same which is to a great extent negligible. Fifty percent of the firstborn kids, had nonverbal IQs in the range of mental retardation, but seventy percent of the second born siblings had similar levels of IQ.This effect however did not spill over to the autistic signs characteristic of societal and nonverbal communicative deficits. More so a tendency of first born kids being more outspoken than their juniors became also evident. Due to this pattern, birth order difference was confirmed to have an effect on the nonverbal IQ status of an individual as it also affected the verbal IQ status. Conclusion Intelligent quotient (IQ) as a measure of an individual’s intelligence and cognitive abilities is affected by among other things the birth order of a sibling in their family. Results of four studies carried out independently in the United States of America and Kuwait ,indicates a correlation of an individual’s IQ and their birth order. Besides birth order, the environment also had a critical influence on one’s personality and character. The age of one’s parent at the time of birth had also some secondary effects on their personality. The size of one’s family in regard to the number of siblings they had crops up as an issue of discussion on this topic. This is attributed to the fact that most intelligent couples, tend to have fewer number of children as opposed to those that are less intelligent. References A.&R.Lynn, A. (2008). Personality and Individual Differences. New York: Press. Bailey, A. Bolton, P., Simonoff, E., Yuzda, E.and Rutter, M. (1995). Autism as a strongly genetic disorder. New York: Print. Beer, J., & Horn, J. (2000). The in?uence of rearing order on personality development within two adoption cohorts. Berlin: Press Sulloway, F. J. (1996). Born to rebel: Birth order, family dynamics and creative lies. New York7: Pantheon. Read More