Content and correlates of sisters’ messages about dating and sexuality

Killoren, Sarah E.; Campione‐Barr, Nicole; Streit, Cara; Giron, Sonia E.; Kline, Gabrielle C.; Youngblade, Lise M.

doi:10.1177/0265407518781039

Cited by 10 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 36 publications

(48 reference statements)

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“…While issues related to body image are particularly salient to adolescents, so are issues surrounding dating and sexuality. Older sisters’ views and experiences of dating and sexuality were important in shaping younger sisters’ views about romantic relationships and sexual experiences through their communication about these issues (Killoren et al, ). Taken together, these findings suggest that while disclosure among adolescent and emerging adult siblings is important for high‐quality sibling relationships, not all youth benefit similarly.…”

Section: Support and Positivity: Not All Goodmentioning

confidence: 99%

Love Them and Hate Them: The Developmental Appropriateness of Ambivalence in the Adolescent Sibling Relationship

Campione‐Barr

Killoren

2019

Child Dev Perspectives

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The quality of sibling relationships has important implications for each sibling's development, and not always in the expected ways, because both conflict and intimacy are associated with both positive and negative developmental outcomes. Additionally, these relationship qualities do not occur in isolation since sibling relationships are known as the quintessential love-hate relationship. The ambivalence (i.e., coexistence of positive and negative feelings) siblings experience toward one another during childhood and adolescence and the prevalence of this feeling make the sibling relationship unique. Ambivalence in the sibling relationship during adolescence is developmentally appropriate and may benefit individuals throughout life. In this article, we argue that adolescence is the tipping point in the sibling relationship that sets the stage for how healthy and engaged, or distant and uninvolved, relationships with siblings become in adulthood. KEYWORDS-siblings; adolescenceUnsurprising to the more than 80% of youth who grow up with a sibling, sibling relationships are often considered the quintessential love-hate relationship. It is this ambivalence, or the coexistence of positive and negative feelings toward one another, that is often considered one of the unique hallmarks of siblinghood. While ambivalence in other close relationships (e.g., parent-child relationships, friendships, romantic liaisons) is considered suboptimal, we argue in this article that the ambivalent nature of the sibling relationship, particularly during adolescence, is both relationally and developmentally appropriate, and can have unique costs and benefits.Research and theory suggest that all close relationships must involve balancing positivity and negativity or conflict and closeness. From a social relational perspective, Collins and Laursen (1992) suggest that how much conflict or negativity a relationship can handle is determined by the type of relationship. Closed-field relationships (e.g., parent-child relationships, sibling relationships) are constrained by genetics, norms, or laws. Alternatively, open-field relationships (e.g., friendships, romantic relationships) are more likely to be voluntary and to form (and dissolve) at much faster rates. Given these distinct traits, closedfield relationships can withstand greater conflict or negativity than open-field relationships.As closed-field relationships, sibling relationships can withstand more conflict and intensity of affect than other egalitarian relationships (e.g., those with friends, romantic partners). Additionally, while parent-child relationships can also withstand more conflict than relationships with peers, siblings are likely able to withstand greater ambivalence than parents and children because of the more imbalanced hierarchy children have with their parents. Over the course of adolescence, the parent-child power imbalance shifts, and at least until autonomy is achieved, youth are at a disadvantage in terms of making decisions within the relationship. Relationships wit...

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Section: Support and Positivity: Not All Goodmentioning

confidence: 99%

Love Them and Hate Them: The Developmental Appropriateness of Ambivalence in the Adolescent Sibling Relationship

Campione‐Barr

Killoren

2019

Child Dev Perspectives

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“…In general, same-sex siblings are more likely to report more access to shared life events than opposite-sex siblings, which might increase younger siblings’ early sexual engagement (Elton et al, 2019 ). However, some research has argued that what has been considered as a “same-sex effect” is better described as a “sister-effect” (Widmer, 1997 ) since sisters’ dyads may be particularly important in the socialization of adolescent sexuality due to their greater levels of intimacy, on average (Killoren et al, 2019 ; Widmer, 1997 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Finally, older siblings may also serve as mentors since they can provide information concerning safe sexual activities and set standards of conduct more effectively than parents (Elton et al, 2019 ; Killoren & Roach, 2014 ; Killoren et al, 2019 ). This suggests that adolescents who discuss sexual matters with siblings enter into sexual activity with greater confidence and a deeper level of knowledge concerning sexual risks, which may help them to avoid risky behavior regardless of their age of initiation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Siblings are not only a direct and passive source of influence and learning, but they may also serve to transmit, validate and reinforce attitudes, norms and beliefs through communication which plays as a mechanism of sexual socialization (Christoper, 2001 ). According to symbolic interactionism (Christoper, 2001 ), siblings’ interactions and conversations about sexuality are a mechanism that shapes sexual roles and ways of learning about behaviors (Killoren et al, 2019 ). According to this theoretical approach, explicit communication about sex is a way to derive-meaning, add value and shape attitudes to one’s own sexual experiences as well as a way to transfer them to another person (Christoper, 2001 ; Killoren et al, 2019 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to symbolic interactionism (Christoper, 2001 ), siblings’ interactions and conversations about sexuality are a mechanism that shapes sexual roles and ways of learning about behaviors (Killoren et al, 2019 ). According to this theoretical approach, explicit communication about sex is a way to derive-meaning, add value and shape attitudes to one’s own sexual experiences as well as a way to transfer them to another person (Christoper, 2001 ; Killoren et al, 2019 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Birth Order and First Sexual Experience: Do Siblings Influence Sexual Debut in Adolescents?

Pasqualini¹,

Sacker²,

McMunn³

2021

Arch Sex Behav

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Birth order may foster specific roles for individuals within the family and set in train a dynamic that influences the development of specific behaviors. In this paper, we explored the relationship between birth order, sex, timing of sexual initiation, and its consequences for risky sexual behavior and sexual health. We conducted a path analysis to simultaneously estimate direct and indirect effects using data from the National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles (NATSAL-3). Whereas women born as only-children were more likely to sexually debut at later ages, middle-child boys were significantly more prone to initiate sexual intercourse earlier compared with first-borns. As expected, early sexual initiation was associated with riskier behaviors and sexual health outcomes. These associations were partially moderated by siblings role as confidants about sexuality. Our findings have implications for preventive programs aimed at promoting healthy sexual debuts and behaviors over the life span.

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Siblings as ethnic–racial socialization agents: A call for research

Su‐Russell

Finan

2022

New Drctns Chld & Adlscnt

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Research illustrating the adverse impact of discrimination and the increasing ethnic and racial diversity in the United States has resulted in a substantial body of work examining risk and protective factors for marginalized and ethnic and racial minority individuals. One factor that has received considerable attention over the past several decades is ethnicracial socialization (ERS). Extant empirical research on ERS has heavily focused on parents, especially mothers, as socialization agents. What is noticeably missing from this literature is the potentially important roles of siblings as salient ERS agents. After briefly illustrating the focus of past research on parents as ERS agents, we review the theoretical justification for studying siblings in the ERS process and the very limited research on siblings' role in ERS-related processes. We close with a discussion of the important considerations for future researchers investigating sibling ERS.

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Content and correlates of sisters’ messages about dating and sexuality

Cited by 10 publications

References 36 publications

Love Them and Hate Them: The Developmental Appropriateness of Ambivalence in the Adolescent Sibling Relationship

Love Them and Hate Them: The Developmental Appropriateness of Ambivalence in the Adolescent Sibling Relationship

Birth Order and First Sexual Experience: Do Siblings Influence Sexual Debut in Adolescents?

Siblings as ethnic–racial socialization agents: A call for research

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