Transcript Birth Order Study - Mount Holyoke College

Birth Order Study
Jamie Monzo, Saleha Chaudhry, Ann
Kimble, Maria Lim, and Sara Torelli
Introduction
• Research has shown that specific
characteristics tend to be associated with
different birth orders (Hoffman, 1998)
• Birth order characteristics are
oversimplified generalizations applied to a
specific group of people (Sherman, 1996)
Introduction Continued. . .
• Stereotypes have the ability to affect the
stereotyped group’s performance with
subtle priming
– This can result in stereotype threat
Introduction Continued. . .
• Independent Variables
1. Birth Order (natural groups)
–
–
First-born
Latter-born
2. Priming
–
–
•
Primed
Not Primed
Dependent Variable
–
Total score on questionnaire
Introduction Continued. . . .
• Hypothesis:
– We hypothesized that there would be no main
effect for birth order or priming
– We hypothesized that there would be a
significant interaction between birth order and
priming
• First-born women who were primed with their birth
order position would score significantly higher than
unprimed groups and latter-born groups.
Introduction Continued. . .
• Rationale: Our hypothesis was based upon
stereotype threat research which suggests
that a prime is necessary in order to invoke
the anxiety that accompanies the stereotype
(Steele, 1998)
Method
• Participants
– 125 Mount Holyoke Students between the ages
of 18-50
– We used a 2 (birth order: first-born or latterborn) x 2 (priming: priming or no priming)
independent groups design
– All participants were exposed to one of four
conditions
Materials
•
•
•
•
•
Consent Form
Priming Statement
Questionnaire with job scenario
Birth Order Survey
Debriefing Statement
Operational Definitions
• First-Born /Only Child is defined as the
oldest child in the family or the only child
in the family
• Latter-Born is defined as a child who is not
the first born
• First-Born Characteristics are words that
are associated with first borns/only children
Procedure
• Half the participants were given a priming
statement
• Participants were asked to read the scenario
and complete the questionnaire
• Upon completion of the experiment, the
participant was asked to fill out a birth order
survey
Results
• DV: Total score on questionnaire
• Hypothesis: first-born women who were
primed with their birth order position would
score significantly higher than unprimed
groups and latter-born groups
• We used a 2 (birth order: first-borns or
latter-borns) X 2 (prime: priming or no
priming) independent groups ANOVA
Results Continued . . . .
Mai n Effect of Bi rth Order

100.00

Error Bars show 95.0% Cl of Mean
Bars show Means
Total Score
75.00
50.00
25.00
0.00
First born
Latter born
Birth Order
Fi gure 1
Results Continued . . . .
M ain Effe ct o f Prim in g

100.00

Error Bars show Mean +/- 1.0 SE
Bars show Means
Total Score
75.00
50.00
25.00
0.00
Primed
Not Primed
Priming
Fi gure 1
Results Continued. . .
Bir th Orde r and Pr im ing
100.00




Birth Orde r
First born
Latter born
Error Bars show Mean +/- 1.0 SE
Total Score
75.00
Bars show Means
50.00
25.00
0.00
Primed
Not Primed
Priming
Fi gure 1
Discussion Continued. . . .
• Our results were inconsistent with past
research
• External validity- sample
• Reliance on self-assessment as opposed to
actual measure of performance
• Issue with job application scenario
• Within-family context