Only Child Syndrome Isn’t A Real Thing, According To A New Study!

Just because you don't have siblings, doesn't mean you're selfish!

‘Only child syndrome’ is a term often heard for those of us who do not have siblings. This term also brings along many stereotypes.

 

 

We’ve long been told that if we don’t have siblings, we’re more likely to be self-centered, demanding, and bad at sharing.

 

 

It looks like the only children of the world can unite and toss all those unwanted stereotypes back at people.

New research from the Shaanxi Normal University in Xi’an, China has revealed being an only child does not make you more selfish.

 

 

During the study, volunteers were asked to do tasks related to altruism. As a result, researchers found that there was no difference in how altruistic people were depending on whether they had siblings.

 

 

Their study has proved that the stereotypes are groundless, as only children were not more self-centered than those with siblings.

 

Only children are becoming more prevalent across many countries, following the overall decreasing fertility rate worldwide.