Siblings in dyads: relationships among perceptions and behavior.
The ways in which middle-childhood siblings perceive themselves as similar or different was assessed with a sample of 40 pairs of 9- to 11-year-old (younger) and 12- to 14-year-old (older) siblings. Each child was interviewed and completed a card sort procedure and a measure of self-competence. Sibling pairs participated in three behavioral tasks coded for cooperation and conflict. Self-ratings, self-perceptions, and sibling behavior were analyzed for their association with the perceived similarity construct. Siblings perceived themselves as being more like one another than did their mothers. Forty-one percent of the variance in their perceived similarity was accounted for by paired self-cooperation ratings, social competence, and behavioral task scores.
Graham-Bermann
S A
SA
Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor 48109.
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D003220:Conflict, Psychological; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D008297:Male; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D010553:Personality Development; D012649:Self Concept; D012801:Sibling Relations