The Voice Of Middle Child: Am I Unworthy Enough?

As we all know, not all things are just purely good or bad. There is no doubt that we can still see something good out of things that we felt were wrong at the beginning. So does the middle child phenomenon. According to the birth order, a middle child naturally can obtain some advantages from their siblings and will likely become a negotiator [4].

1. The older 

Based on their observations through older siblings, there is a big chance that they're gonna be more conscious. They have older ones to take inspiration from and learn much to prevent a lot of behavioral errors they likely do to others, especially to their parents. 

1. The younger

Since the younger ones have a greater chance of being spoiled, they will learn a lot about how to be a caring person. It can be seen through a middle struggle showing affection to the younger by giving hand when they fall down or walk down the street. Besides that, they can be a responsible person since they have to handle anything while their parents are away from the house. 

What Is The Best Advice We Can Take?

[4] Wallace (2020) through Psychology Today suggested, as parents, we have to manage aside time daily with the middle child.  According to the fact that each child thinks and acts in an expected way, it should be highlighted that the child should be parented accordingly. Thus, the middle children feel that they are always surrounded by love. Then, we can take small conversations and give them an opportunity to tell how their day was and praise them for that. Since the middle child is sometimes predicted to be an independent person, parents at least still encourage their individuality by giving them the freedom to find their own interests, passions, and paths. Here's something that needs to be emphasized: Do not expect the middle child to do or be like everyone else, especially their siblings. Let us create a friendly environment to construct their self-esteem. Last but not least, we can assure them that there is no huge difference between them and their siblings within the family by convincing them about affection and supporting them emotionally. Therefore, they do not have to compete for recognition. They also feel more appreciated and think that they do not feel a lack of affection because they are surrounded by love.

On the child's side, we should set a great mindset that all children are precious and become the pride of their parents. We should believe that parents do not want to lose and harm their children because they want their child to be a successful person. Griffin (2012) reassures the middle child that the amount of parental care we receive as a child does not determine our success or how we will be. So, the best thing we can emphasize: every child could get the same and enough attention from their parents amongst their siblings and have a great mindset and belief that they will be successful in their own way.

REFERENCES

[1] Kurnia, Galuh Mega. (2020, August 14). Sindrom Anak Tengah, Apakah Benar Ada?. Unair News. Retrieved April 20, 2022, from http://news.unair.ac.id/2020/08/14/sindrom-anak-tengah-apakah-benar-ada/  

[2]  Hadjicharalambous, Demetris. (2021). Examining The Relationship Between Parenting Practices and Children’s Characteristics. European Journal of Social Science Studies. Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://oapub.org/soc/index.php/EJSSS/article/view/968