31
Only Children
Only Children
G. Stanley Hall
• Being an only child is a disease in itself.
• Overprotected• Overindulged
Romeo & Juliet
• Alas,
• Was Juliet
• An Only Child?
Happier by the Dozen
• Early Industrial Psychologists had 12 children to demonstrate efficiency.
• • Happily described in
1948 book, Cheaper by the Dozen
Lillian Moller Gilbreth
Cheaper by the Dozen
• Three Movies 1950
(based on 1948 book)
2003 & 2005 (stories unlike
• 1948 book)
Meta Analyses-Falbo & Polit
• Quantitative reviews of literature
• Over 100 studies• 1925-1984
• Difference between onlies and others was small, even if statistically significant.
Key Findings
• The high achievement of only children was similar to that of children from 2-child families and firstborns.
• The achievement of only children was higher than children from 3+ child families.
Parent-Child Relations
In terms of, Expert reports, Parental descriptions of
children, & Children’s descriptions of parents
First-time parents: More anxiety -> Greater vigilanceFirst-time parents: higher expectations
for their children than more experienced parents.
Apolo Ohno
China’s One-Child Policy
Began over 30 years ago.
Extremely successful in reducing birth rate.
Intended to promote modernization.
Little Emperors
I began conducting research in China…..
Beijing, 1985
Vanessa Fong
2004
Only Hope
Teens were pushed by parents to achieve
Teens were supposed to be vanguard of modernization
2007
EthosMismatch between simple values and more complex models parents want for their children
Falbo & Poston (1993)
50Schools
50Schools
50Schools
50Schools
FourProvinces
Four Provinces in 1990
Province % Urban
* Anhui (n=1000) 44%
* Beijing (n=1000) 70%
* Gansu (n=1000) 50%
* Hunan (n=1000) 30%
Secondary Analyses
Multilevel analysis.Mediation investigated:
Parents’ reports of:Child getting wayHomework helpEducational expectations
Empty Model
Used SAS PROC MIXED
Random Variable = 200 schools
Fixed Variable = None
ICC =.34
Fixed Effects:
Birth Order
Order of birth,
such as firstborn, middle born, last born.
Sibship Size
Number of siblings in a family,
such as, 0, 1, 2, 3, etc.
Model 1: Onlies vs. Others
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1 FB MB LB
One ChildTwo ChildThree+Child
Raw Means-Sibship Size
66
68
70
72
74
76
78
80
82
84
86
0 Siblings 1 Sibling 2 Siblings 3+ Siblings
Third GradeSixthGrade
Model 2: Family Characteristics
Parents’ Education
Range:
None to College Degree
Average: Primary -Jr. High Completion
Family Income
Range:
Less than 1000 to
Over 5000 Yuan
Average: 2501 to 3500 Yuan
Model 3: Control Variables
Individual
Gender
Grade Level
School
Region
Province
Beijing vs.
Anhui,
Gansu,
Hunan
Model 4: Mediators?
Child Getting Way
Homework Help
Educational Expectations
Child Get Way
2.64
2.66
2.68
2.7
2.72
2.74
2.76
2.78
2.8
1 FB MB LB
1 child2 child3+child
Homework Help
2
2.1
2.2
2.3
2.4
2.5
2.6
1 FB MB LB
1 child2 child3+child
Educational Expectations
3.4
3.5
3.6
3.7
3.8
3.9
4
1 FB MB LB
1 child2 child3+child
2.73***
95.89 24.26
1.94*
7.07*** 7.40*** 9.52***
1.60*** -1.24***
0.57*** 0.00
0.27 0.27 0.01 1.53* 0.28
Model 4
100.68 25.45
1.77*
7.17*** 7.16*** 9.71***
1.24*** -1.32***
0.75*** 0.07
0.68 0.64 0.39 2.16** 0.86
Model 3
101.62 37.47
0.81*** 0.09
1.52** 1.43** 1.42 3.22*** 2.08**
Model 2
105.55 44.69
2.27*** 1.81** 2.40** 4.73*** 3.39***
Model 1
Educational Expectations
Level One VarianceLevel Two Variance
School-Level Control Variables Region (Urban) Province Beijing (1) vs. Anhui (0) vs. Hunan (0) vs. Gansu (0)
Individual-Level Control Variables Gender (female) Grade (sixth)
Family Characteristics Parents’ Education Family Income
Sibling Effect One (1) vs. FB, 2C (0) vs. LB, 2C (0) vs. FB, 3+C (0) vs. MB, 3+C (0) vs. LB, 3+C (0)
Measure
Table. Results of Multilevel Models Predicting School Achievement
Note. Unstandardized regression coefficients presented here. *p < .05; **p < .01; *** p < .0001
What’s Next?
• 2008 Chinese Data– Secondary Students– College Students– Young Adults
