Only Child

Is there a perfect family size? Prevailing wisdom would probably indicate at least four: a mother, father and two children -- a boy and a girl. But for many, the family is smaller. Our society's tendency is to make assumptions about an individual's personality based on his or her birth order. Throughout the ages, birth order has been implicated as a significant factor in people's personality development. This "birth-order myth" is manifested in such statements as "He's an over-achiever because he's a firstborn," and "Youngest children are spoiled brats." It's difficult not to attribute personality traits to birth order. Birth order is an observable characteristic that all human beings possess and are capable of discussing. Frequently there does appear to be marked differences in individuals of different birth orders. Alfred Adler, a Viennese psychologist who lived from 1870-1937, established one of the first theories of birth order. His theory focused on the idea of "dethronement." According to Adler a couple's first child is like a little prince or princess; subsequent children "dethrone" this child by taking away parental attention and affection XXXX. The effects of "dethronement", or lack thereof in the case of only children, determine such personality traits as responsibility, attitudes toward authority, self-esteem, and achievement motivation. According to this theory, oldest children are significantly different from youngest children because the first-borns suffer the effects of dethronement while the youngest children do not. Only children possess the characteristics held by first-borns before their "dethronement" occurred, and middle children hold completely different characteristics because they never had the experience of full parental attention before "dethronement" XXXXX It is all together appropriate that I should began the account of my life with the name Alfred Adler. I'm an only child. Alfred Adler as well as other great theorist has