THE ORDER OF CHILDBIRTH IN THE FAMILY AND ITS INFLUENCE ON PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT (USING THE PSYCHOANALYTIC PEDAGOGY OF ALFRED ADLER AS AN EXAMPLE)

Abstract

The article reveals the relationship between the birth order of a child in a family and their personal characteristics. The state of development of the investigated topic in pedagogical science is analyzed. It has been proved that this is a rather significant and relevant scientific problem of the research field of modern pedagogy. S. Freud also claimed that the position of a child among siblings is of great importance in later life, and older and younger children have a number of identical characterological traits. A. Adler indicated the connection between the order of a child’s birth and the formation of his personality, highlighting the ordinal positions of the child in the family. A. Adler discovered that people who occupy similar positions in the family in order of birth have very similar psychological characteristics. He argued that the order in which a child is born in a family is quite an influential factor for a person’s entire destiny, including his career and social relations. The dependence and interrelationship of birth order with such factors as biological differences, intelligence, peculiarities of personality development, mental illnesses are substantiated. The general characteristics of the positions of the only, first, middle and youngest child in the family are explained. Peculiarities of the family situation of development, typical problems, and personal characteristics of each of the specified positions are considered. Our research is dictated by the need to develop such an approach to personality development, which considers it not only as formed under the influence of exclusively genetic factors, but also takes into account the social prerequisites of his development. Emphasis is placed on the fact that the influence of birth order should be studied through the prism of other factors, which involve taking into account the historical and cultural context of upbringing, as well as considering the family as a system.