Only children

The phrase only child refers typically to a child born with no brothers or sisters. This child can also be referred to as the "first born".

The influence of birth order is still an open issue, but some clear patterns have been established.

Personality is clearly and strongly influenced by birth order. Personality psychologists largely (though by no means without debate) agree that the Big five personality traits (also known as Five Factor) represent something like a natural taxonomy of human personality variables. Cross-linguistically the vast majority of adjectives used to describe human personality fit into one of the following five areas, easily remembered by the acronym OCEAN: Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism.

In his book "Born to rebel", and in ongoing research papers, Frank J. Sulloway has mounted conclusive evidence that birth order effects on the Big Five are strong and very consistent. Sulloway has shown firstborns and only children to be more conscientious, more socially dominant, less agreeable, and less open to new ideas compared to laterborns.

Only Children and personality
Many claim that birth order influences personality. The stereotype of the only child is typically that they are spoiled, egotistical, selfish, and narcissistic. This, of course, is not always the case but many only children have been known to inherit such qualities from a childhood devoid of siblings and the requirement to share belongings.

The typical only child has the striving characteristics of the first-born child and the inadequacy feelings and demands of the youngest child. As children, they usually want to be adults so they do not relate to peers very well. When only children become adults, they often believe they've finally "made it" and can now relate better to adults as peers.

The only child will receive all of their expectations from their parents rather than both parents and siblings. Because of this, many only children are in danger of acquiring perfectionistic or people-pleasing behaviors. On a more optimistic note, proponents of birth order theory state that only children to be quite confident, diligent and mature. Not all only children are over-achievers, but even the most laid-back only child is clearly guided by a need to do the right thing and strives to make a difference in society.

Only Children and cousins
Because the only child does not have siblings, many only children develop a bond with near cousins that replicates the relationship of a brother or sister.

Alfred Adler's Contribution
Alfred Adler (1870-1937), an Austrian psychiatrist, and a contemporary of Sigmund Freud and Gustav Jung, included birth order dynamics in his theory of personality formation. Also referred to as family constellation, one's birth order position often (but not always) can leave an indelible impression on the individual's style of life (habitial way of dealing with the tasks of friendship, love, and work). Other factors that may be equally influential are: parental attitudes; organ inferiority, illness, and disabilty; gender roles; or social, economic and religious circumstances. Any overburdening factor may intensify normal inferiority feelings and lead to unconscious compensations or over-compensations (i.e, an extremely talented older or younger sibling). Other birth order factors that should be considered are: the spacing in years between siblings; the total number of children; and the changing circumstances of the parents over time. Adler wisely suggested that birth order does not cause any direction of personality development, but it may be used by the individual as a building brick for his/her freely chosen style of life and fictional final goal. Many researchers, in attempting to prove or disprove the sole effects of birth order, neglect the complexity of other influences.

List of notable / famous "only children"

 * Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
 * Bill Belichick
 * Jake Busey
 * Laura Bush
 * Burt Bacharach
 * Elizabeth Bishop
 * Dick Cavett
 * Jesus Christ
 * Van Cliburn
 * Robert De Niro
 * Brigida Elliott
 * Edsel Ford
 * Clark Gable
 * John Kenneth Galbraith
 * Rudy Giuliani
 * Tipper Gore
 * Alan Greenspan
 * William Randolph Hearst
 * Lillian Hellman
 * Alicia Keys
 * Bobby Knight
 * Wayne Knight
 * Chris Jericho
 * Elton John
 * Vivien Leigh
 * James Michener
 * Jae Muzzin
 * AJ McLean
 * Joe Montana
 * Regis Philbin
 * Natalie Portman
 * Rex Reed
 * Condoleezza Rice
 * Michael Richards
 * Jean Paul Sartre
 * Frank Sinatra
 * Alexander Solzhenitsyn
 * Roger Staubach
 * Robert Louis Stevenson
 * Pat Summerall
 * Lars Ulrich
 * Paul Verlaine
 * Robin Williams
 * Emile Zola
 * Mckenzie Lancaster