Middle child syndrome — whether it’s real or just a myth — has been around since long before Jan Brady of The Brady Bunch wailed, “Marcia, Marcia, Marcia!” It’s the supposed result of a child, born relatively close to two or more others, jockeying for attention from parents torn between older siblings who may have more privileges and responsibilities and younger ones who may need more attention.
The theory holds that first borns’ “firsts” are more enthusiastically celebrated because they’re, well, firsts for the family. And “last borns” are coddled and cooed over because they’re forever considered babies. Middle children can be lost in the shadows as they scramble to find their own niche.
Meri Wallace, who has a master’s degree in social work, founded the Heights Center for Adult and Child Development in Brooklyn, N.Y. In her book Birth Order Blues, she cautions that middle children may misbehave or act silly to get the attention of their parents, whose focus may be tuned to an older sibling who needs help with homework or a younger one bent on getting into mischief.
This could affect his personality and character into adulthood, Wallace says. See Wednesday’s Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for more.