Sibling Rivalry

Sibling rivalry or brood reduction prevailing within bird nests is effectively avoided in solitary aculeate nests because the larvae of wasps and bees usually develop in each brood cell. However, a solitary wasp species, Isodontia harmandi, allows us to study brood reduction in a communal brood cell, where up to a dozen larvae develop in a group relying on prey provisioned by a female wasp. To demonstrate brood reduction in this species, we collected nests at various developmental brood stages from fields for five years (2010-2015). There was a significant decrease in the brood size between the nests sampled at the egg or hatchling stages and those at later stages when analyzing only data excluding nests that were parasitized, attacked by predators, or containing deteriorated prey. In whole brood-rearing experiments, we also confirmed that brood reduction occurred in 30 of 39 nests during larval stages and in 23 nests after cocoon stage. Larval survival was affected positively by total prey weight and negatively by brood size, though cocoon survival was not affected. A thirdquarter (76%) of larval death was identified as sibling cannibalism through observation by time-lapse recording on multi-larvae rearing experiments. Therefore, we conclude that brood reduction routinely occurs as a result of sibling cannibalism in I. harmandi. Additionally, as we could not detect any positive effects of clutch size on the amount of provision, female wasps might overproduce offspring due to the unpredictability of available prey resources. Differences in brood size and reduction among sex categories were undetected, except for parental provisions. Thus, sibling cannibalism may efficiently regulate brood size in communal brood cells under prey shortage.

Siblings are the one who remains together throughout the lives and their relationship is a mixture of love, hate, jealousy, affection and every other emotion. An individual is usually like to imitate or idolize their elder siblings however too much similarities between them sometimes leads to societal comparisons of who done it better. This could create animosity between siblings which leads to estrangement in their adult lives or in some cases it can result in harmful and deadly doings as evident in the story of Cain and Abel. The former sibling murdered the latter one due to jealousy ascended between them, since then this feeling is known as Cain Complex. However with time, people started to not let this feeling of jealousy and rivalry prevail between them and their siblings by using a defensive technique termed as de-identification. This term was coined by Alfred Adler which suggests that an individual strive to be different from others and allow oneself to find their own niche ultimately leading to less rivalrous feeling with siblings. The present article throws light on the development of Cain complex and how the process of de-identification help an individual to develop a different personality.

Abstract:

The author finds a typical character, the hero, who happens to suffer emotionally and at the same time, is forced to live a happy and peaceful life. Yes, a life with The First Face, which means the life of a typical person of this material world, that is otherwise called, the First Religion era. The hero, being a middle-class Tamil boy grows up, gets educated and gets employed. He encounters crushes and falls in love too. Cut-throat materialism plays its role; he is forced to quit his love emotions and to enter into a typically arranged marriage life. He learns more, earns more and lives sufficiently simple.
He later comes to know that he was betrayed in his love-affair cum arranged marriage. He finds a sudden full stop. He laments and grieves. He then slowly regains from his pain. Now comes his second face. He writes his own story in his mother tongue, Tamil, titled, “The Second Face” to vent out his grief.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) can have a significant impact on the family system while siblings of individuals with ASD often take on considerable responsibility. Although research has investigated the experience of having a sibling with ASD using children and adolescents, few have explored the experience with young adults.The present study aimed to address this using the following research question: 'What is it like for young adults to have a sibling with autism spectrum disorder?'. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with male (N=3) and female (N=3) university students. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis produced the core category.'Family revolves around sibling' along with four themes: 'Obligation', Maturity', 'Reactions of others' and 'Negative emotions'. The present study identifies several differences which may have been overlooked, and by exploring the experience with young adults, makes an important step towards understanding the sibling experience across the lifespan.

Aperçu sur quelques orientations de recherche en anthropologie Les ouvrages de sciences sociales consacrés à l'étude des fratries 1 , peu nombreux, remarquent généralement qu'elles ne sont que rarement placées au coeur des recherches. L'histoire et l'anthropologie des sociétés occidentales, tout comme la sociologie, y compris la sociologie de la famille, les ont surtout abordées par la bande et non pas en tant que configuration spécifique. S'interrogeant sur les raisons d'une telle lacune, la sociologue Monique Buisson (2003) avance plusieurs hypothèses parmi lesquelles les difficultés méthodologiques propres au recueil des données. En effet les historiens se heurtent à la difficulté de suivre dans le temps les individus. Les migrations professionnelles, les migrations par mariage, la dispersion des contrats de mariage chez des notaires de villages différents, rendent difficile et parfois impossible la reconstitution du devenir de chacun des membres d'une même fratrie. Du côté des sociologues qui recueillent des récits de vie, les difficultés sont autres mais tout aussi problématiques comme Monique Buisson a pu en faire l'expérience. A ces problèmes méthodologiques, il faut ajouter sans doute une seconde raison qu'elle n'évoque pas mais tout aussi déterminante. La sociologie de la famille ignore les fratries parce qu'elles ne constituent pas en tant que tel un problème social à l'inverse des questions de filiation (paternité, maternité, adoption) ou d'alliance (mariage, PACS, divorce) qui interpellent directement le droit et les services sociaux. En France, les relations fraternelles ne font pas l'objet d'une législation spécifique 2 , aucune obligation juridique de solidarité n'étant établie au sein de la fratrie. La seule discipline directement intéressée par la gestion des rapports éventuellement conflictuels entre frères et soeurs dans la société est la psychologie et, dans une moindre mesure, la psychologie sociale 3. Monique Buisson note cependant que les historiens, anthropologues et sociologues ont abordé les fratries sous l'angle de certaines de leurs caractéristiques (la taille) ou de certaines spécificités de leurs membres (le rang de naissance et le sexe). Mais, comme elle le remarque, elles sont alors prises comme variables explicatives relatives à d'autres objets d'études : par exemple l'analyse de la reproduction sociale à travers la transmission des biens matériels et immatériels des ascendants à chacun des enfants. Cette problématique des relations verticales au sein de la famille a été centrale dans les travaux des historiens et des anthropologues des sociétés occidentales dans les années 1975-1 Voir les introductions des ouvrages d'Eric Widmer (1999) et de Monique Buisson (2003) 2 Voir Belmonte (2000) 3 Voir la bibliographie française et anglo-saxonne présentée par E. Widmer (1999)

This paper examines the effect of sibling composition and birth order on child health by using data from Indonesia Family Life Survey in 2007. Child health is measured by child height. By using Ordinary Least Squares, this study finds that  given the same number of siblings, a higher number of male siblings is associated with poorer health of a child  (i.e. shorter height). Further, a higher number of birth order is associated with better health of a child.

Despite increased awareness of family responses to chronic illness and disability, there is still a need to understand experiences of well siblings. We begin to address this issue by asking, ‘What is it like to have a sibling with juvenile idiopathic arthritis?’ (JIA). Eight families with an adolescent diagnosed with JIA participated. Four members of each family, including one healthy sibling, were interviewed and transcripts analyzed using grounded theory. Analysis suggests healthy siblings see their family as different to ‘normal’ families, forfeit time with peers, share vicariously adverse experiences of their ill sibling, and feel inadequately informed. Such experiences amplify the ambivalent nature of sibling relationships and are possibly felt most strongly during late childhood and early adolescence. Support from extended family can reduce these negative experiences and facilitate social and emotional adjustment which also occurs over time as the children mature. These findings have implications for healthcare professionals and voluntary organizations.

The breeding biology of Australian Pelicans (Pelecanus conspicillatus) was studied on the coast of South Australia between 2002 and 2004. This study aimed to compare breeding on the coast with previous studies of inland breeding Australian Pelicans and to test whether this species exhibits siblicidal brood reduction. Nests were generally constructed on the ground in spatially and temporally discrete colonies. Nests within colonies were 1.3 ± 0.5 m apart (Range = 0.6-4.5; n = 327), whereas colonies were 329 m apart (Range = 21-1,136; n = 63).
Within colonies, 80% of nests were initiated within 10 days of each other. Colonies contained 41.0 ± 37.6 nests (Range = 1-148; n = 63). Most colonies were initiated during the austral winter and spring (June-September) in contrast to opportunistic breeding in inland areas. Clutch size averaged 1.92 ± 0.36 eggs (Range = 1-4; n = 2,297), and incubation lasted 32 days (Range = 28-38; n = 57). Hatching success averaged 41.5 ± 38.6% (Range = 0-99; n = 24 colonies), the number of nestlings that survived to join a crèche was 20.3 ± 22.4% (Range = 0-66; n = 24 colonies), and fledging success averaged 15.3 ± 18.3% (Range = 0-61; n = 24 colonies). Aggression among nestlings and resulting wounds were observed in 48% of broods (n = 64). Mortality during the 10-day nestling
period was high (5.5 ± 2.2%/day; Range = 2.5-10.0; n = 45) and was the major determinant of overall breeding success. These findings suggest that Australian Pelicans exhibit siblicidal brood reduction.

Offspring phenotypic variation has important consequences for nestling individual fitness, survival and reproductive success, but the sex-specific reproductive value and fitness returns for parents of this variation has been little explored. We analysed twelve phenotypic traits of nestling Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) in relation to their sex, age and hatching date, and explored if they were sex-specifically associated
with rearing environment and survival. In addition, we studied sex-specific differences in offspring phenotype related to parental factors, since the existence of sexual dimorphism may reflect differential parental investment. Bill-head length and mediated immune-response varied in relation to offspring sex, with males showing larger values than females. Immune response was also affected by environmental (year), rearing (competition over 14 days old) and parental factors (clutch size). None of the morphological, serological and immunological variables was associated with chick mortality, but mortality of female nestlings was related to the longest periods of within-brood competition. Although some parental traits influenced offspring phenotype, sexual dimorphism
among nestlings did not vary in relation to parental age, mass or arrival date, which may imply no great differential costs of raising sons or daughters, and therefore, no adjustment of parental effort in relation to nestling sex. However, evidence that immune response was higher for sons in larger clutches and raised with siblings, indicates a difference in the developmental strategies of sons and daughters which might be related to their reproductive value. These results provide thus evidence of certain pathways for parental sex-allocation
that may differentially affect sons and daughters.

Stealing of provisioned food items by adult conspecifics (intraspecific kleptoparasitism or piracy) is common among birds, can reduce breeding success and may be one disadvantage of colonial breeding. Theft by chicks from neighbouring broods has rarely been quantified but may have similar reproductive consequences and the factors that influence it require further study. We took advantage of unusually diverse weather during the critical early stages of growth to elucidate the factors driving kleptoparasitic behavior of Common Tern Sterna hirundo chicks. Kleptoparasitism was restricted to misty days when large chicks were fed much smaller fish than on other days, inducing them to steal from neighbouring broods with young chicks. Our study indicates that kleptoparasitism by chicks could be a way to overcome shortfalls in parental provisioning, and may be a net cost of colonial breeding. Our results both provide evidence of a potential mechanism behind food-stealing by chicks and suggest hypotheses for future testing.

When a young boy sees his parents preoccupied with sister, baby, and daily chores, he wonders, "What About Me?" A gentle remedy for sibling rivalry, this compassionate picture book shows children kind, helpful, and creative ways they can ask for the attention they need.

A charming, rhyming invitation to children to consider new ways to become helpful members of the family team.
- Adele Faber & Elaine Mazlish, authors of How To Talk So Kids Will Listen

A pure joy--and also quite instructional without seeming to be so.
- Edward Hallowell, MD, author of Delivered from Distraction

This book will help a child learn empathy. We are happy to recommend it.
- Dr. William and Martha Sears, co-authors of The Discipline Book

Genomic imprinting has been proposed to evolve when a gene's expression has fitness consequences for individuals with different coefficients of matrilineal and patrilineal relatedness, especially in the context of competition between offspring for maternal resources. Previous models have focused on pre-emptive hierarchies, where conflict arises with respect to resource allocation between present and future offspring. Here we present a model in which imprinting arises from scramble competition within litters. The model predicts paternal-specific expression of a gene that increases an offspring's fractional share of resources but reduces the size of the resource pool, and maternal-specific expression of a gene with opposite effects. These predictions parallel the observation in economic models that individuals tend to underprovide public goods, and that the magnitude of this shortfall increases with the number of individuals in the group. Maternally derived alleles are more wi...