Birth order, in vocational psychology dictionary

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Dictionary of Vocational Psychology

Birth Order

A central construct in Adlerian theory/individual psychology, and used in assessment based on Adlerian theory (Watkins & Savickas, 1990). First-born are generally found to be more intelligent and better represented in the professions than are later-born individuals. Their interests tend to be more cognitive and analytical. They also tend toward somewhat more conservative or authority-endorsing roles, in addition to being at relatively higher risk for almost every form of psychopathology than later-born children, with one exception: last-born children have the highest rate of substance abuse problems. There is evidence that later born children have more creative and outdoor interests. However, the relationship between birth order and personality/job choice/job adjustment issues is very 'fuzzy,' and much depends on how the individual him or herself perceives their "place" within the family constellation (parents, siblings, and others in the local family group).

Websites of Interest

Adlerian overview of birth order characteristics. By Henry T. Stein of the Alfred Adler Institute of San Francisco.
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/ homepages/hstein/birthord.htm

Birth order and personality differences. By Daniel Eckstein. Discusses conclusions from empirical studies indicating important birth order related differences in personality.
http://www.encouragingleadership .com/Birth_Order.htm

Birth order affects career interests, study shows. Press release of study by Fred Leong and Paul Hartung showed that "first-born children tended to have more cognitive and analytical interests, while later-borns were more artistic and oriented to the outdoors." Their article was published in Journal of Career Assessment.

References

Born to Rebel: Birth Order, Family Dynamics, & Creative Lives

Birth Order Effect: How to Better Understand Yourself and Others