Mechanisms of sibling socialization in normative family development

Whiteman, Shawn D.; Becerra, Julia M.; Killoren, Sarah E.

doi:10.1002/cd.255

Cited by 42 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…Recent work by Campione-Barr, Lindell, Greer, and Rose (2014), for example, highlights unique associations between siblings’ relational aggression and adolescents’ adjustment. Other potentially important dimensions of sibling relationships include siblings’ intimate disclosures (e.g., Killoren & Roach, 2014), trust (e.g., Gamble, Yu, & Kuehn, 2011), and modeling (e.g., Gamble et al, 2011; Whiteman, Becerra, & Killoren, 2009; Whiteman, Zeiders, Killoren, Rodriguez, & Updegraff, 2014). …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sibling Relationships and Adolescent Adjustment: Longitudinal Associations in Two-Parent African American Families

Whiteman

Solmeyer

McHale

2015

J Youth Adolescence

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Sibling relationships have been described as love-hate relationships by virtue of their emotional intensity, but we know little about how sibling positivity and negativity operate together to affect youth adjustment. Accordingly, this study charted the course of sibling positivity and negativity from age 10 to 18 in African American sibling dyads and tested whether changes in relationship qualities were linked to changes in adolescents’ internalizing and externalizing behaviors. Participants were consecutively-born siblings (at Time 1, older siblings averaged 14.03 (SD = 1.80) years of age, 48% female; younger siblings averaged 10.39 (SD = 1.07) years of age, 52% female) and two parents from 189 African American families. Data were collected via annual home interviews for three years. A series of multi-level models revealed that sibling positivity and sibling negativity declined across adolescence, with no significant differences by sibling dyad gender constellation. Controlling for age-related changes as well as time-varying parent-adolescent relationship qualities, changes in sibling negativity, but not positivity, were positively related to changes in adolescents’ depressive symptoms and risky behaviors. Like parent-adolescent relationships, sibling relationships displayed some distancing across adolescence. Nevertheless, sibling negativity remained a uniquely important relational experience for African American adolescents’ adjustment.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sibling Relationships and Adolescent Adjustment: Longitudinal Associations in Two-Parent African American Families

Whiteman

Solmeyer

McHale

2015

J Youth Adolescence

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“…Additionally, recent work shows that, for siblings close in age, modeling was associated with younger siblings sharing more friends with their older brothers and sisters (Whiteman et al, 2014a). As such, older siblings introducing their younger siblings to potential sexual partners (Whiteman et al, 2009) may enhance sibling similarities. Interestingly, when youth reported lower levels of modeling, older siblings' sexual initiation was associated with a lower likelihood of youth's sexual initiation by age 20.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Instead, scholars base inferences about modeling and imitation on correlations between siblings' behaviors (Whiteman, Becerra, & Killoren, 2009). Recently, more direct tests of social learning principles have shown that younger siblings' reports of modeling their older siblings' behaviors relate to greater similarity between siblings in a variety of health risk domains, including alcohol-related cognitions and behaviors, deviant behaviors, and sexual risk behaviors (Whiteman, Bernard, & McHale, 2010; Whiteman et al, 2014a; Whiteman et al, 2014b ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Romantic Relationship Experiences from Late Adolescence to Young Adulthood: The Role of Older Siblings in Mexican-Origin Families

Wheeler

Killoren

Whiteman

et al. 2015

J Youth Adolescence

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Youth's experiences with romantic relationships during adolescence and young adulthood have far reaching implications for future relationships, health, and well-being; yet, although scholars have examined potential peer and parent influences, we know little about the role of siblings in youth's romantic relationships. Accordingly, this study examined the prospective longitudinal links between Mexican-origin older and younger siblings' romantic relationship experiences and variation by sibling structural and relationship characteristics (i.e., sibling age and gender similarity, younger siblings' modeling) and cultural values (i.e., younger siblings' familism values). Data from 246 Mexican-origin families with older (M = 20.65 years; SD = 1.57; 50% female) and younger (M = 17.72 years; SD = .57; 51% female) siblings were used to examine the likelihood of younger siblings' involvement in dating relationships, sexual relations, cohabitation, and engagement/marriage with probit path analyses. Findings revealed older siblings' reports of involvement in a dating relationship, cohabitation, and engagement/marriage predicted younger siblings' relationship experiences over a two-year period. These links were moderated by sibling age spacing, younger siblings' reports of modeling and familism values. Our findings suggest the significance of social learning dynamics as well as relational and cultural contexts in understanding the links between older and younger siblings' romantic relationship experiences among Mexican-origin youth.

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“…The link between sibling interactions and the younger child’s social behavior is thought to be explained by attachment and social learning mechanisms (Dunn, 2007; Whiteman, Becerra, & Killoren, 2009) and, in theory, operates throughout childhood, as children develop cognitive and affective expectations about relationships via attachment and interactional skills through observation, imitation, practice, and feedback via social learning. However, empirical studies tend to be of very young sibling dyads (e.g., infants imitate the behavior of preschool siblings) or adolescent sibling dyads (e.g., older adolescents’ drug use predicts that of their younger adolescent siblings).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Reciprocal and Complementary Sibling Interactions: Relations With Socialization Outcomes in the Kindergarten Classroom

Harrist

Achacoso²,

John

et al. 2014

Early Education and Development

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Research Findings To examine associations between sibling interaction patterns and later social outcomes in single- and two-parent families, 113 kindergarteners took part in naturalistic observations at home with siblings, classmates participated in sociometric interviews, and teachers completed behavior ratings. Sibling interactions were coded using a newly-developed 39-item checklist, and proportions of complementary and reciprocal sibling interactions computed. Complementarity occurred more among dyads where kindergartners were with toddler or infant siblings than among kindergartners with older or near-age younger siblings. Higher levels of complementarity predicted lower levels of internalizing but were not related to externalizing problems. Kindergartners’ sociometric status in the classroom differed as a function of sibling interaction patterns, with neglected and controversial children experiencing less complementarity/more reciprocity than popular, average, and rejected children. Finally, there was some evidence for differential associations of sibling interaction patterns with social outcomes for children in single- versus two-parent families: regressions testing interaction effects show sibling reciprocity positively associated with kindergartners’ social skills only in single-parent families, and complementary sibling interactions positively related to internalizing problems only in two-parent families. Implications for Practice Those working with divorcing or other single-parent families might consider sibling interactions as a potential target for social skill building.

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Mechanisms of sibling socialization in normative family development

Cited by 42 publications

References 43 publications

Sibling Relationships and Adolescent Adjustment: Longitudinal Associations in Two-Parent African American Families

Sibling Relationships and Adolescent Adjustment: Longitudinal Associations in Two-Parent African American Families

Romantic Relationship Experiences from Late Adolescence to Young Adulthood: The Role of Older Siblings in Mexican-Origin Families

Reciprocal and Complementary Sibling Interactions: Relations With Socialization Outcomes in the Kindergarten Classroom

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