Sibling influences on gender development in middle childhood and early adolescence: A longitudinal study

The development of gender role qualities (attitudes, personality, leisure a ctivities) from middle childhood to early adolescence was studied to determ ine whether siblings' gender role qualities predicted those of their sister s and brothers. Participants were 198 firstborn and second-born siblings (M s = 10 years 9 months and 8 years 3 months, respectively, in Year 1) and th eir parents. Families were interviewed annually for 3 years. Firstborn sibl ings' qualities in Year 1 predicted second-born children's qualities in Yea r 3 when both parent and child qualities in Year 1 were controlled, a patte rn consistent with a social learning model of sibling influence. Parental i nfluence was more evident and sibling influence less evident in predicting firstborns' qualities; for firstborns, sibling influences suggested a de-id entification process.