In society, there is an assumption that middle children have different personalities from their older and younger siblings. Middle children often have a rebellious stereotype and often feel neglected because they do not get the same attention as their older siblings. This condition is known as middle child syndrome. But does this syndrome really exist?

Middle Child Characteristics 

Middle child syndrome is a stereotype that developed due to assumptions in society and how the media portrays middle children in storybooks, TV series, and movies. It is said that because the middle child is in between their siblings, this makes it easier for parents to forget the needs of the middle child compared to the needs of their siblings.

Therefore, it is assumed that middle children can feel envious and neglected by their parents. Being in the middle makes them compete for attention from their parents, like their older siblings. There are also middle children who feel that they have the role of peacekeeper or the person who keeps the peace in the family and mediates when there is a problem.

Some characteristics of the middle child include:

• Due to feeling neglected, the middle child may feel that their role in the family is unclear and may rebel as a form of wanting attention from their parents.
• Some middle children often take on the role of mediating conflicts between older and younger siblings, thus making middle children have good social skills or high emotional intelligence.
• Some middle children reported that they felt they were not the favorite child of their parents and felt left out in the family.
  
  

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Is Middle Child Syndrome Even Real?

Middle child syndrome was first introduced in 1964 by psychologist Alfred Adler, who theorized that a child's birth order can affect his or her personality. According to him, even though children are born to the same parents and grow up in the same environment, their psychological development can be different due to their birth order.

According to Alfred's theory, children's characters based on their birth order are as follows:

• Firstborns are more authoritarian and feel powerful because of the high expectations often placed on them by their parents.
• The youngest child is treated like a spoiled brat and can never surpass his siblings.
• The middle child is irritable but difficult to adjust to because they feel they don't get the same attention and are sandwiched between their younger and older siblings.

These days, Adler's theory has been heavily criticized due to the many methodological problems found in his research. According to the APA (American Psychological Association), this is not a medical condition. There is no scientific evidence to suggest that being a middle child can drastically affect one's personality or lead to mental problems one day.

Some studies examining the relationship between birth order, personality, and intelligence show inconsistent results. Other factors, such as socioeconomic status and parenting style, may have more influence on the development of a child's personality.

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Maintaining the Mental Health of Middle Child

Although it is not a medical condition that every middle child must experience, there are families that have this dynamic. For this reason, as a parent, some of the things that you can do to raise the middle child well include:

• Giving balanced attention to the middle child
• Involving the middle child in family events
• Training the middle child to make decisions about themselves
• Train your children to have a voice and share their concerns
• Appreciate each child's achievements and give praise or rewards according to their efforts
• Spend time together with only the middle child by doing fun things

If you have questions about child development psychology, you can either visit a doctor or make use of the consultation features that are available in the Ai Care application by downloading the Ai Care application from the App Store or Play Store.

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