Sibling differentiation (or deidentification) is theoretically posited as a mechanism that reduces competition and comparison between siblings and thus fosters sibling harmony (i.e., more positivity and less negativity). Empirical research, however, reveals inconsistent findings regarding the links between sibling differentiation and youths’ sibling relationship qualities. The present study utilized a longitudinal dyadic design to investigate whether sibling differentiation promoted relational harmony or discord over time and to identify the reciprocal longitudinal linkages between older and younger siblings’ perceptions of differentiating from each other. Two waves of survey data were collected from 682 families (older siblings: 51% female, M = 15.67 years; younger siblings: 48% female, M = 13.14 years; and one parent: 85% mothers, M = 45.15 years at Time 1) in five Midwestern states in the U.S. Results suggested that adolescents who tried to differentiate more from their siblings perceived their relationships more negatively at follow-up. These findings held for both older and younger siblings and are consistent with prior cross-sectional research, but inconsistent with deidentification theory. Additionally, older and younger adolescent siblings’ differentiation efforts were mutually related over time, especially among siblings from same-gender dyads. The discussion focuses on the relational impact of sibling differentiation and the reciprocal influences of differentiation between consecutively-born siblings during adolescence.
AdlerA. (1927). Understanding human nature. Greenberg.
2.
AllisonM. D.SabatelliR. M. (1988). Differentiation and individuation as mediators of identity and intimacy in adolescence. Journal of Adolescent Research, 3(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1177/074355488831002
3.
BlythD. A.Foster-ClarkF. S. (1987). Gender differences in perceived intimacy with different members of adolescents’ social networks. Sex Roles: Journal of Research, 17(11–12), 689–718. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00287683
4.
BollenK. A. (1989). Structural equations with latent variables. John Wiley & Sons.
5.
BroderickC. B. (1993). Understanding family process: Basics of family systems theory. Sage Publications.
Campione‐BarrN.RoteW.KillorenS. E.RoseA. J. (2021). Adolescent adjustment during COVID‐19: The role of close relationships and COVID‐19‐related stress. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 31(3), 608–622. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12647
8.
CauceA. M.Domenech-RodriguezM. (2002). Latino families: Myths and realities. In ContrerasJ. M.KernsK. A.Neal-BarnettA. M. (Eds.), Latino children and families in the United States: Current research and future directions (pp. 3–25). Praeger Press.
9.
CoxM. J.PaleyB. (2003). Understanding families as systems. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 12(5), 193–196. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8721.01259
EriksonE. H. (1968). Identity: Youth and crisis. WW Norton & company.
12.
FeinbergM. E.HetheringtonE. M. (2000). Sibling differentiation in adolescence: Implications for behavioral genetic theory. Child Development, 71(6), 1512–1524. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8624.00243
13.
FeinbergM. E.McHaleS. M.CrouterA. C.CumsilleP. (2003). Sibling differentiation: Sibling and parent relationship trajectories in adolescence. Child Development, 74(5), 1261–1274. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8624.00606
14.
FurmanW.BuhrmesterD. (2009). The Network of relationships inventory: Behavioral systems version. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 33(5), 470–478. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025409342634
15.
GrahamJ. W.TaylorB. J.OlchowskiA. E.CumsilleP. E. (2006). Planned missing data designs in psychological research. Psychological Methods, 11(4), 323–343. https://doi.org/10.1037/1082-989X.11.4.323
16.
GrotevantH. D.CooperC. R. (1985). Patterns of interaction in family relationships and the development of identity exploration in adolescence. Child Development, 56(2), 415–428. https://doi.org/10.2307/1129730
17.
HerY. C.BaturZ. Z.VergauwenJ.MortelmansD. (2021). Siblings’ similarities and dissimilarities: A review of theoretical perspectives and empirical insights. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 13(4), 447–462. https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12436
18.
HoweN.BukowskiW. M.Aquan-AsseeJ. (1997). The dynamics of reciprocal sibling interaction: Are context and maternal behaviour important?Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 29(2), 92–100. https://doi.org/10.1037/0008-400X.29.2.92
19.
HuL. T.BentlerP. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6(1), 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118
20.
JensenA. C.PondA. M.Padilla-WalkerL. M. (2015). Why can’t I be more like my brother? The role and correlates of sibling social comparison orientation. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 44(11), 2067–2078. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-015-0327-8
21.
KlineR. B. (2016). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (4th ed.). Guilford Press.
McHaleS. M.KimJ. Y.WhitemanS. D. (2006). Sibling relationships in childhood and adolescence. In NollerP.FeeneyJ. A. (Eds.), Close relationships: Functions, forms and processes (pp. 127–149). Psychology Press/Taylor & Francis.
24.
McHaleS. M.UpdegraffK. A.Helms-EriksonH.CrouterA. C. (2001). Sibling influences on gender development in middle childhood and early adolescence: A longitudinal study. Developmental Psychology, 37(1), 115–125. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.37.1.115
25.
McHaleS. M.UpdegraffK. A.WhitemanS. D. (2012). Sibling relationships and influences in childhood and adolescence. Journal of Marriage and Family, 74(5), 913–930. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2012.01011.x
26.
MuthénL. K.MuthénB. O. (2017). Mplus user’s guide. Muthén & Muthén.
27.
OlsonD. H. (1993). Circumplex model of marital and family systems: Assessing family functioning. In WalshF. (Ed.), Normal family processes (2nd ed., pp. 104–137). The Guilford Press.
28.
PerosaL. M.PerosaS. L.TamH. P. (1996). The contribution of family structure and differentiation to identity development in females. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 25(6), 817–837. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf01537456
29.
SchachterF. F.GilutzG.ShoreE.AdlerM. (1978). Sibling deidentification judged by mothers: Cross-validation and developmental studies. Child Development, 49(2), 543–546. https://doi.org/10.2307/1128728
SolomonY.WarinJ.LewisC.LangfordW. (2002). Intimate talk between parents and their teenage children: Democratic openness or covert control?Sociology, 36(4), 965–983. https://doi.org/10.1177/003803850203600409
33.
SullowayF. J. (1996). Born to rebel: Birth order, family dynamics, and creative lives. Pantheon Books.
34.
TuckerC. J.UpdegraffK. (2009). The relative contributions of parents and siblings to child and adolescent development. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 2009(126), 13–28. https://doi.org/10.1002/cd.254
35.
TuckerC. J.UpdegraffK.BarilM. E. (2010). Who’s the boss? Patterns of control in adolescents’ sibling relationships. Family Relations, 59(5), 520–532. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3729.2010.00620.x
VivonaJ. M. (2007). Sibling differentiation, identity development, and the lateral dimension of psychic life. Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, 55(4), 1191–1215. https://doi.org/10.1177/000306510705500405
38.
WangY. Z.Li, Y., Liu, T. T., Zhao, J. J., Li, Y. J., & Niu, X. B. (2022). Understanding relationships within cultural contexts: Developing an early childhood sibling relationship questionnaire in China. Family Relations, 71(1), 220–237. https://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12586
39.
WangJ.WangX. (2020). Structural equation modeling: Applications using Mplus (2nd ed.). John Wiley & Sons.
40.
WatermanA. S. (1982). Identity development from adolescence to adulthood: An extension of theory and a review of research. Developmental Psychology, 18(3), 341–358. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.18.3.341
41.
WhitemanS. D.BecerraJ. M.KillorenS. E. (2009). Mechanisms of sibling socialization in normative family development. In KramerL.CongerK. J. (Eds.), Siblings as agents of socialization (pp. 29–43). Jossey-Bass.
42.
WhitemanS. D.BernardJ. M. B.McHaleS. M. (2010). The nature and correlates of sibling influence in two-parent African American families. Journal of Marriage and Family, 72(2), 267–281. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2010.00698.x
43.
WhitemanS. D.ChristiansenA. (2008). Processes of sibling influence in adolescence: Individual and family correlates. Family Relations: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Applied Family Studies, 57(1), 24–34. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3729.2007.00480.x
44.
WhitemanS. D.JensenA. C.MaggsJ. L. (2014). Similarities and differences in adolescent siblings’ alcohol-related attitudes, use, and delinquency: Evidence for convergent and divergent influence processes. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 43(5), 687–697. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-013-9971-z
45.
WhitemanS. D.MaiyaS.CassinatJ. R.SerangS.KellyB. C.MustilloS. A.MaggsJ. L. (2023). Sibling influences on adolescent alcohol use during the spring 2020 COVID-19 pandemic shutdown. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 37(7), 961–968. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000841
46.
WhitemanS. D.McHaleS. M.CrouterA. C. (2007a). Competing processes of sibling influence: Observational learning and sibling deidentification. Social Development, 16(4), 642–661. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9507.2007.00409.x
47.
WhitemanS. D.McHaleS. M.CrouterA. C. (2007b). Explaining sibling similarities: Perceptions of sibling influences. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 36(7), 963–972. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-006-9135-5
48.
WongT. M. L.BranjeS. J. T.VanderValkI. E.HawkS. T.MeeusW. H. J. (2010). The role of siblings in identity development in adolescence and emerging adulthood. Journal of Adolescence, 33(5), 673–682. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2009.11.003
