Parenting as Beta Testing: Perceived Changes in Parenting from Firstborns to Secondborns

Abstract

Research suggests that parents often change parenting strategies between children, but few studies have examined parents’ perceptions of those changes. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to create a measure of parental perception of experience-based change between firstborn and secondborn. Participants included 401 parents (62.9% female, 76.6% White, Mage = 39.91) with at least two adolescent children (older Mage = 14.5; younger Mage = 11.84) split evenly between mixed (49%) and same gender (51%) sibling pairs. The measure items assessed parents’ perception of parenting changes between their children for monitoring, expectations, nurturing, and discipline. Analyses further support the reliability and validity of the measure; for example, parents who reported lower expectations between children reported lower parenting self-efficacy, and parents who perceived becoming less nurturing between children reported a less positive relationship with the secondborn. Discussion focuses on implications and directions for future research using the measure.