Most siblings like to believe they are the smartest, the cutest, and the funniest, but when it comes down to it, the reality is not always as we would like for it to be. One example of this is a recent study that found that younger siblings are the funniest.
While we don’t make the rules, science is science. The study which was published in PubMed set out to observe birth order and personality. What they found was quite interesting. The theory that sparked the study was that our birth order determines our personality. Because younger siblings take after their older siblings, they impact their development.
Furthermore, parents tend to treat each sibling differently, which only adds to the differences observed.
In another survey, carried out by YouGov, researchers polled 1,782 people who had siblings. They were asked to rank their family members. Characteristics they were ranked on were responsible, relaxed, funny, and other personality traits. The majority of the time, the survey was able to conclude that the youngest was ranked the funniest in the family. Even older siblings agreed.
Additionally, the younger siblings were ranked as being the most relaxed and the easiest-going. Conversely, older siblings were more responsible, organized, and successful. According to researchers, this is likely tied to how children are treated. One theory is that younger siblings are funnier because they tend to try to entertain their family members, and they are given a bit more freedom than their older siblings.
Of course, it’s important to bear in mind that there are always exceptions. As an older sibling, I can see that my younger sister is hilarious and while we each have our unique brand of humor, and because humor is subjective, it just depends. Either way, it is still interesting to see how different siblings are different from one another.