Sibling Rivalry Key to Success in Sports

“Those involved in studying sport actively discuss what they consider to be key factors involved in athletic development. Research over the past few decades has focused on the physiological, psychological, biomechanical and sociological factors that contribute to sporting success, but what role does the family play?

Family influences give rise to a range of interesting discussions with family related topics such as genetics, environmental influences and social issues all identified as being important contributors to athletic development. Research shows that families play an important role in introducing and supporting athletes throughout the various stages of their career, but the question that has rarely been asked is – how does the structure of the family influence sports participation?

In this article I will be exploring the role of the sibling within the family unit – a relatively unexplored area of sports research. Firstly I will look at the birth order of siblings, and in particular the effect of being a later born child.

Are later born children instilled with a competitive streak?

As a younger sibling myself I strived to be as good at sport as my older brother, who excelled at football from a young age. On my first PE lesson I vividly remember my PE teacher saying to me ‘Well let’s see if you are as good as your brother then!’ This only served to fuel my competitive streak and I worked hard to compete with my brother’s success and gain the praise of my parents and teachers. In a newspaper interview Rebecca Adlington’s mother attributed Rebecca’s sporting success to:

‘a matter of the little sister being determined not to be outdone by her big sisters … Because of that early rivalry, she has always had a competitive streak.’”

Read the full post here.