Second-born kids less likely to be pampered by mothers: Study

Washington: There is always an unresolved argument between siblings over who is loved more by their mother or who is her favorite.

A recent study has revealed that while mothers hold similar views and attitudes when parenting their first and second children, their parenting behaviors with their two children differ.

The study observed 55 mothers interacting with their first child at the age of 20 months and again using the same procedures when their second child reached the same age.

The behavious of mothers with first-born and second-born children were not similar in rank order. For example, mothers who engaged in a lot of play with their first-borns did not necessarily engage in a lot of play with their second-borns. However, there was no systematic average difference in the amounts or qualities of mothers' interaction directed toward first and second children.

The results suggested that first-born children tended to be more sociable and emotionally available to mothers than second-born children.

According to the findings, despite relatively consistent parenting beliefs over time, siblings behave differently from one another by 20 months of age, and mothers behave differently when interacting with their two children at the same age.

The full findings are present in the journal- Social Development.