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Family is an important part of every bodys life, and an important part of the family
dynamic is siblings. According to Tillman, siblings play a major role in the everyday lives of
young people and have a significant effect on their outcomes, (2008). Not all families have
siblings, but there are several families that do, and it has a huge impact on their life. When
looking into sibling relationships there is still much to learn how communication works between
siblings. According to Dunleavy, Martin, and Rocca the sibling relationship is often the
longest one maintained and provides several benefits, (2010). Sibling relationships are the
longest relationship that many will have, and therefore it is important to look into how sibling
maintain these relationships.
When it comes to siblings, most of the time siblings choose to maintain a relationship.
However there are a few issues that come up when it comes to maintaining the relationship.
Issues such as how siblings communicate throughout their life, gender differences, and age.
These are all obstacles that siblings come across when they try to maintain one of the most
important relationships they will ever have.
Sibling Communication Through the Years
Childhood
During childhood sibling relationships are not always the best, which means their
communication skills between each other may not be the best either. One problem that is often
seen in sibling relationships is rivalry. Rivalry during childhood is seen as negative because
rivalry could continue into adulthood (Machiz, Reich, and Van Volkom, 2011). If a child has
rivalry that continues into adulthood it could have a negative effect on the way siblings continue
their relationship. This rivalry that is seen in childhood could be the result from when parents
play favorites. The problem here is when favoritism is displayed, the quality of the relationship

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between siblings deteriorates, (Machiz et al., 2011). Sibling deterioration could potentially ruin
the most important relationship that a child will ever have, and favoritism could be the cause.
Family typology also plays a role in childhood sibling communication. According to Fortuna,
Groh, Haydon, Holland, and Roisman, siblings of highly preoccupied individuals perceived
more conflict in the relationships with them, (2011). This means that children who have
preoccupied parents may also have more conflict with their siblings because of their family
typology. In childhood, sibling relationships are important because it shapes them into what type
of relationship they will have with their siblings when they reach adulthood.
Adolescence
During adolescence sibling relationships go through a lot. According to Derkman,
Engels, Kuntsche, Vander Vorst, and Scholte early adolescents seem to experience less warmth
and more conflict in their sibling relationships than children do, (2011). More conflict
development is definitely not healthy for a relationship that lasts a lifetime. Adolescence is also a
time when friendships become important to an individual and sometimes it means less time and
need for their sibling relationship (Derkman et al., 2011). This can cause issues in sibling
relationships, because siblings may feel left out or replaced by their siblings friends. However,
during middle and older adolescence sibling relationships make a change for the better. For
instance conflicts tend to decline in middle and late adolescence, (Derkman et al., 2011),
which is a step forward in the sibling relationship. Also, during adolescence there is huge
influence between sibling relationships and adolescence (McHale, Updegraff, and Whiteman,
2012). Overall, sibling relationships may not be the best during adolescence, but later on
throughout adolescence sibling relationships become better, and more important in siblings
lives.

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Adulthood
Adulthood is the point when sibling relationship is at its strongest. Even though siblings
go on to live their own lives away from their siblings, they still communicate with their siblings.
In a study, it was revealed the top three reasons why adults maintain their sibling relationships
are: we are family, they provide one another with support, and they share similar or common
interests and experiences (Myers, 2011). In adulthood, the sibling relationship is different than it
was during childhood and adolescence. In many cases the adult relationship is a voluntary one
that individuals maintain to create a lifelong relationship, (Dunleavy et al., 2010). Even though
the sibling relationship, as well as sibling communication, was not its best during childhood and
early adolescence, everything changes in adulthood. The sibling relationship is an important once
siblings become adults.
Research Question 1: In the research presented above it explained the levels of conflict during
both childhood and adolescence, but none of the journals presented information about conflict
during adulthood. Therefore, what is conflict like, if any, during adulthood?
Research Question 2: What is sibling communication like when one sibling is going through
childhood, and the other is going through adulthood?
Research Question 3: Why does sibling communication start improving during adolescence,
when there is still some conflict, and not in adulthood, when there is not really any conflict?
Sibling Gender Dyads
Sister/Sister Dyads
Sister- sister dyads seem to have the best relationship out of all other sibling gender
dyads. Sister- sister siblings tend to show more warmth, affection, and support than any other
sibling dyad (Bouchey, Eccles, Jodl, and Shoulberg, 2010). Most sister-sister dyads seem to have

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a very close relationships, this may be because, women are more often nurturing and
emotional, (Machiz, 2011). Having two women together who nurture and emotional will result
in a closer relationship than any other sibling dyad. Sister- sister dyads there also report signs of
higher intimacy, higher than any other sibling gender dyads (Dunleavy, 2010). With sister- sister
dyads showing more warmth, affection, support, emotion, and intimacy toward one another,
these relationships are strong, and will most likely be maintained.
Brother/Brother Dyads
Brother- brother dyads are different from sister-sister dyads, and mainly it is because in
this sibling dyad there is no female present. There is research that brother- brother dyads may not
be as good as siblings with a sister in sibling dyad because having a sister can be important.
According to Machiz, Reich, and Van Volkom, relationships involving sisters are said to be
especially important during older years of life, because women are often more nurturing and
emotional, (2011). Brother- brother dyads may experience less of a nurturing and emotional
relationship with each other, and it is because there is no female in the dyad. Along with having a
less nurturing and emotional relationship, men are more likely to compare themselves their
sibling (Machiz et al., 2011). Comparing oneself to their sibling is not healthy for the sibling
relationship, especially when brother-brother dyads have a less nurturing and emotional
relationship to begin with. Brother-brother dyads do not have a poor relationship per se; they just
dont show how they feel about their sibling relationships.
Mixed Sex Dyads
The final sibling dyad is the mixed sibling dyad which is a sister- brother dyad. Having a
female and a male in this dyad has some very interesting results. For instance, women tend to
communicate with their brothers more than men do with any of their siblings, (Dunleavy, 2010).

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Having a female in this sibling dyad is going to make the relationship more emotional, because
proven before; females do display more emotion and communicate more in the relationship. On
the other hand, males do not display much of that in the relationship. In some cases for brothersister dyads behavioral closeness tends to be pretty low (Rueter & Samek, 2011). Even though
closeness is low in mixed sex dyads, closeness is only low during childhood and increases
sometime in middle adolescence (Dunleavy, 2010). Having a brother- sister sibling dyad is
interesting because females tend to care more about their relationships than their brothers do.
However, closeness does increase as the years go on, which only makes their relationship
stronger.
Hypotheses 1: According to the research presented above it seems that it will be easier to
maintain a sibling relationship when there is at least one female involved. Sibling dyads
consisting of two males may be a bit harder to maintain throughout life.
Hypothesis 2: Since research presents females do more of the communication toward male
siblings, they will most likely be the ones who want to stay in contact their male siblings once
they are no longer living in the same house.
Hypothesis 3: In the research provided above it states brother- brother dyads compare themselves
to each other, which makes their relationship more competitive.
Age
Older Siblings
Older siblings play an important role in sibling relationships. Older siblings are seen as
influential role models because their younger siblings look up to them and Buist says older
siblings are influential role models, (2010). Older siblings know that their younger siblings look
up to them, therefore older siblings tend to show positive views and attitudes toward their

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younger siblings (Buist, 2010). It is crucial that older siblings communicate and act in a positive
way toward their younger siblings, because younger siblings may copy that behavior. It is also
important that older sibling grow up in a secure environment. This important because when older
siblings are more secure, they respond to their siblings distress and are able to give them
comfort, (Fortuna et al., 2011). Not only do older siblings need to be a good role model for their
younger siblings, but they also need to be there when they need them. Being an older sibling is a
lot of work, but they are trying to be the best sibling they can be.
Younger Siblings
Younger siblings roles are the complete opposite from their older siblings roles. Instead
of being a good role model, and being an influence, they look up to their older siblings. Younger
siblings tend to have the same behavior their older siblings express. According to Buist younger
siblings observe negative behavior of their older siblings, and incorporate this behavior in their
own behavior, (Buist, 2010). Younger siblings have more of a watch and learn relationship
when it comes to their older siblings. Even though younger siblings may be influenced and
reflect the same behaviors as their older siblings, they still want their own identity. Younger
siblings try hard to show their parents that they have a separate identity from their older siblings,
they tend to seek out attention from parents and are compared to the older sibling by
parents, (Machiz, 2011). Younger siblings have to deal with their parents comparing them to
their older siblings. Even though younger siblings want to be like their older siblings, they want
their parents to realize that they do not want to be a carbon copy of their older sibling. Being a
younger sibling, could be hard when they are trying to grow up when they have an older sibling.

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Research Question 1: What is sibling communication like when there is a middle born sibling?
Research Question 2: If there is a sibling dyad of twins, does the twin that is a few minutes
younger look up to the twin that is a few minutes older?
Research Question 3: Do older sibling have a bigger impact on their siblings behavior than the
parents do?
In conclusion, one of the longest and most important relationships many people will have
is the relationship with a sibling. Perhaps the most interesting fact about sibling relationships is
how they are maintained throughout the siblings lives. There are a few issues revolving around
sibling relationship such as sibling relationships through childhood, adolescence, and adulthood.
It was found that sibling relationships were not great during childhood, but improved during
adolescence and adulthood. The second issue was sibling gender dyads, and it was found that
sibling relationships involving females tend to be better than those involving just males. Finally,
the final issue was age difference, and it was found that older siblings have a big impact on
younger siblings. Overall, these issues do affect sibling relationship, and sometimes they have
positive outcomes and, while other outcomes were not that great. One thing is for sure, sibling
relationships are the most important relationship an individual will ever have.

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9
References

Bouchey, Heather A., Eccles, Jacquelynne S., Jodl, Kathleen M., Shoulberg, Erin K. (Feb. 2010).
Longitudinal Links Between Older Sibling Features and Younger Siblings Academic
Adjustment During Early Adolescence. Journal of Educational Psychology. 102(1).
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Buist, Kirsten L. (Aug 2010). Sibling Relationship Quality and Adolescent Delinquency: A
Latent Growth Curve Approach. Journal of Family Psychology. 24(4) Retrieved from
http://0search.proquest.com.library.svsu.edu/docview/763258850/fulltextPDF/141BA15BD3047
07036/7?accountid=960
Derkman, Marleen M.S., Engels, Rutger C.M.E., Kuntsche, Emmanuel, Scholte, Ron H.J., Vorst,
Haske van der (April 2011). Bidirectional Associations Between Sibling Relationships
and Parental Support During Adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence. 40(4).
Retrieved from http://0search.proquest.com.library.svsu.edu/docview/858659591/fulltextPDF?accountid=960
Dunleavy, Katie Neary, Martin, Matthew M. & Rocca A. Kelly (April 2010). Siblings Motives
for Talking to Each Other. The Journal of Psychology, 144(2). Retrieved from http://
http://0search.proquest.com.library.svsu.edu/docview/741064952/14132A6C2B61C7E12A9/47?
accountid=960

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Fortuna, Keren, Groh, Ashley M., Haydon, Katherine C., Holland Ashley S., Roisman, Glenn I.
(Sept. 2011). Attachment States of Mind and the Quality of Young Adults Sibling
Relationships. Developmental Psychology. 47(5). Retrieved from http://0search.proquest.com.library.svsu.edu/docview/876240245/fulltextPDF/141BA26C9664C
6061D7/11?accountid=960
Machiz, Carly, Reich Ashley E., & Volkom, Michele Van. (Mar. 2011). Sibling Relationships in
the College Years: Do Gender, Birth Order, and Age Spacing Matter? North American
Journal of Psychology, 13(1). Retrieved from http://0search.proquest.com.library.svsu.edu/docview/851541867/fulltextPDF/1413710270C6C6
C072F/8?accountid=960
McHale, Susan M., Updegraff, Kimberly A., Whiteman, Shawn D. (Oct. 2012). Sibling
Relationships and Influences in Childhood and Adolescence. Journal of Marriage and
Family, 74(5). Retrieved from http://0search.proquest.com.library.svsu.edu/docview/1324449920/fulltextPDF/141329810B17B
F0CD68/3?accountid=960
Myers, Scott A. (Mar. 2011). I Have to Love Her, Even if Sometimes I May Not Like Her:
The Reasons Why Adults Maintain their Sibling Relationships. North American Journal
of Psychology, 13(1). Retrieved from http://0search.proquest.com.library.svsu.edu/docview/851541857/fulltextPDF/141370B395F6C6
C072F/1?accountid=960
Rueter, Martha A., Samek, Diana R. (Oct. 2011). Associations Between Family Communication
Patterns, Sibling Closeness, and Adoptive Status. Journal of Marriage and Family. 73(5).

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Tillman, Kathryn Harker. (Winter 2008). Coresident Sibling Composition and the Academic
Ability, Expectations, and Performance of Youth. Sociological Perspectives. 51(4).
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