Personality Descriptors Identified by Adler

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Alfred Adler, one of the first researchers to maintain that birth order influences personality. According to Adler, a childbirth order or order of birth significantly affected his/her growth, personality and potential behaviors. In the same vein, more recent research has indicated links in influence as contributors to career choices, academic success, and an overall influence in success in life in general. According to Adler, the oldest children are usually bossy, dominant, power loving, responsible, and dependable. Middle children Adler believes "Show an occasional streak of rebelliousness, but are generally friendly and competitive. Younger children, tend to be rebels, they like taking risks, and are highly competitive even though they have problems accomplishing their tasks on their own" (Adler school, n.d.). Adler posits that only children crave attention and tend to be self-centered, but are mostly positive, mature and hardworking (this is perhaps the one birth order that I can say, for most part in my family and friends that I find holds more validity in terms of generalization). In general however, Adler's theory and analysis of birth order is vague, and flawed.

While I understand some aspects such as the fact that firstborns as they are first and parents tend to unknowingly "smother" them by paying them too much attention; "handling them with care"; and so on-I believe birth order is not as significant a factor; as much as how parents treat that child depending on the order in which they were born. I know many individuals who exhibit the classic descriptors (as per Adler) for firstborns; and they are lastborn and vice versa. It is true that in general, a firstborn will be the "model" and "sets the pace" at which ...