Adolescent Siblings Research Articles

Editorial: Deconstructing social behaviour problems across disorders

Editorial: Deconstructing social behaviour problems across disorders

Autoantibody heritability in thyroiditis: IgG subclass contributions

Using a simple screening technique called regression of offspring on mid-parent (ROMP) to examine the role of IgG subclasses in affected and unaffected siblings of children and adolescents with autoimmune thyroid disease and their parents, both total-restricted and subclass-restricted autoantibodies to thyroglobulin (Tg) were assayed quantitatively for each of the IgG subclasses. There was a significant correlation of anti-Tg titer of probands with parental titers in thyrotoxicosis (TT), (R2 = 0.569, p = 0.001), but not in chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis. The most striking correlation was in TT patients of African-American ancestry, (R2 = 0.9863, p = 0.0007). Additional insight is provided by examining the contributions of the IgG subclasses individually, particularly those whose concentrations appear not to have direct influence on the total IgG titers. Thus, using small numbers of patients, and assaying the IgG subclass distributions, as well as any other immunoglobulin isotypes that are significantly altered in autoantibody assays, ROMP can be performed rapidly to ascertain which quantifiable parameters may be usefully extended to predict disease onset and progression.

Associations between adolescent siblings' relationship quality and similarity and differences in values.

Theoretically framed by a self-determination perspective on value acquisition and taking into account research into sibling similarity and differences, the current study examined links between sibling relationship quality and adolescents' intrinsic values (benevolence and universalism) and extrinsic values (power, achievement, and materialism). Positive sibling experiences were expected to be positively linked to intrinsic values and negatively linked to extrinsic values, and negative experiences were hypothesized to fuel extrinsic values and thwart intrinsic values. Using a sample of 205 adolescent sibling pairs (older children M = 17.61 years, younger children M = 14.63 years) and multilevel modeling, we assessed within- and between-dyads differences to identify whether the sibling relationship functions as a correlate of values in a similar or different way for 2 siblings. Although siblings were not very similar in their values, sibling competition predicted sibling similarity in higher levels of extrinsic values and lower levels of intrinsic values. Implications for value acquisition research that so far has focused almost solely on parents and failed to acknowledge other processes within families are discussed.

Bidirectional Associations Between Sibling Relationships and Parental Support During Adolescence

Sibling relationships and parental support are important for adolescents’ development and well-being, yet both are likely to change during adolescence. Since adolescents participate in both the sibling relationship and the parent–child relationship, we can expect sibling relationships and parental support to be associated with each other. Theoretically, it can be expected that there is either a spillover from one relationship to another (congruence hypothesis) or that one relationship can compensate for the other (compensation hypothesis). However, research examining these associations in adolescence is limited. The present study longitudinally investigated the bidirectional associations between sibling relationships and parental support during adolescence. For five consecutive years, data were collected using self-reports of 428 families, consisting of a father, a mother, and two adolescent siblings. The mean ages of the first-born (52.8% males) and second-born (47.7% males) were 15 and 13 years at T1, respectively. For the second-born siblings, prospective associations were found between sibling relationships and adolescent-reported parental support in early adolescence, with no differences between same-sex and mixed-sex dyads. These associations were not found for first-born siblings or for parents’ reports of support. The findings suggest a spillover from the sibling relationship to adolescent-reported parental support only in early adolescence. Findings and implications are discussed in terms of the congruence/spillover and the compensation hypothesis.

Maternal emotion coaching, adolescent anger regulation, and siblings’ externalizing symptoms

Increases in externalizing behaviors during the transition to adolescence may put children at risk for developing mental disorders and related problems. Although children's ability to regulate their emotions appears to be a key factor influencing risk for maladjustment, emotion processes during adolescence remain understudied. In this longitudinal study, we examined a multi-level mediational model in which emotion coaching by parents was posited to influence the ability of adolescents to regulate their emotions, which in turn influences their expression of problem behaviors. We recruited a representative community sample of 244 families with biological sibling pairs comprising a child in late elementary school and a child in middle school. Maternal meta-emotion interviews were coded for mother emotion coaching and adolescent difficulty with anger. Mothers also completed questionnaires on adolescent irritability. Ratings of adolescent problem behaviors were obtained from mother and teacher questionnaires completed at two time points. Using structural equation modeling, constructs were partitioned into components across older and younger siblings to examine shared and nonshared variance and contextual effects. Cross-sectional data indicated that mothers' emotion coaching of anger was related to better anger regulation in adolescent siblings, which was, in turn related to less externalizing behavior. Although support for mediational effects was limited in the longitudinal data, both older and younger siblings' difficulties in regulating anger predicted adolescent externalizing behavior three years later. Additional longitudinal predictors of externalizing behavior were observed for younger siblings. In particular, emotion coaching of anger by mothers was associated with decreased externalizing behavior, while conversely, older siblings' externalizing behavior was associated with increased externalizing behavior in the younger siblings over time. The findings highlight the importance of considering family emotion processes in understanding adolescent problem behavior. Both maternal emotion coaching of adolescent anger and adolescent difficulty in regulating anger influenced adolescent externalizing behavior. Emotion coaching interventions seem worthy of consideration for enhancing the impact of prevention and intervention programs targeting youth externalizing behaviors.

Sibling incest: A literature review and a clinical study

Few previous studies have explored the characteristics and dynamics of adolescent sibling incest. The objectives of this paper were twofold: first, to conduct a literature review that accounts for earlier research in the area, and secondly, to conduct a clinical study to explore differences regarding the characteristics of a group of adolescent sibling incest offenders (n=21) compared to a group of adolescent non-sibling offenders (n=24). Comparisons were made regarding variables such as family dysfunction, the offenders' prior victimization and offending behaviour. The data were derived from intake assessment files and semi-structured interviews with 45 adolescents who had sexually offended. The sibling incest offender group had grown up more often in dysfunctional families. Moreover, the results indicated that the offending behaviour in the sibling incest group was more severe. The study gives some empirical support for the possibility that sibling incest can be one sign, among others, of maltreatment during childhood.

Cerebrotendinous xanthomatosis

We describe two adolescent Indian siblings with cerebrotendinous xanthomatosis with cognitive impairment, progressive neurological deterioration, juvenile cataracts and chronic diarrhea. Both patients had bilateral Achilles tendon xanthomata. Rapid progression of disease was an unusual finding in these cases. Magnetic resonance imaging showed characteristic signal alterations in cerebellar hemispheres, brainstem and posterior cerebral white matter.

Familial Recurrent Hypersomnia: Two Siblings with Kleine-Levin Syndrome and Menstrual-Related Hypersomnia

Kleine-Levin syndrome and menstrual-related hypersomnia are rare idiopathic sleep disorders occurring primarily in adolescence. They are characterized by intermittent periods of excessive sleepiness, cognitive disturbances, and behavioral abnormalities. In both, the etiology remains unknown but autoinmune, hormonal, infectious, and inflammatory mechanisms have been proposed. The authors describe, for the first time, the association of Kleine-Levin syndrome and menstrual-related hypersomnia in 2 adolescent siblings who shared the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) loci DQB1*0501. The same haplotype has been associated with sleepwalking and with rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder. This gender differences in the manifestation of a probably genetic influenced sleep disorder suggests that hormonal mechanisms could be implicated in the phenotypical expression of this sleep disorder. The male sibling with Kleine-Levin syndrome was easily controlled with carbamazepine in low doses, but his sister could be only efficaciously treated with oral contraceptives.

“Who Said You Could Wear My Sweater?” Adolescent Siblings’ Conflicts and Associations With Relationship Quality

A new measure of sibling conflict was used to identify 2 types of conflicts in 115 adolescent sibling pairs (older siblings, M = 15.59, SD = 2.01 years; younger siblings, M = 13.02, SD = 2.06 years). Conflicts overall were more frequent than intense and more likely to involve the invasion of the personal domain than conflicts involving equality and fairness, especially by early adolescent older siblings. For both siblings, and with parents' ratings of their relationship with the target child controlled, these conflicts were negatively associated with sibling relationship quality. The implications of the findings for sibling relationships during adolescence are discussed.

Applied Restorative Justice as a Complement to Systemic Family Therapy: Theory and Practice Implications for Families Experiencing Intra‐Familial Adolescent Sibling Incest

This article considers the impact on and therapeutic responses to families where there has been intra‐familial sexual assault (IFSA) by an adolescent member of the family against another younger member of the family. In doing so, the article will specifically highlight the nexus between systemic family therapy ideas and an applied restorative justice response in the form of Youth Justice Conferencing (YJC), as experienced through working as a family therapist in the area of adolescent sexual offending.

The Experience of Siblings of Adolescents With Eating Disorders

To qualitatively and quantitatively explore the experience and QOL of siblings of AEDs. To date, there is little research on the quality of life (QOL) and the effect an eating disorder (ED) has on the siblings of adolescents with an eating disorder (AEDs). Siblings were recruited between January 2008 and April 2008. Inclusion criteria included siblings aged 10-18 years old and living with a sibling with an ED. Exclusion criteria included having an ED, or major psychiatric disorder, or a communication problem that interfered with their participation. Siblings completed a general assessment questionnaire, the Pediatric Quality of Life inventory 4.0 Generic Core Scales and Eating Attitudes Test-26 (EAT-26). Focus group interviews were conducted until saturation was achieved and thematic analysis was employed. Twenty siblings (14 females) of 17 AEDs (15 females) participated. All but one sibling scored within the normal range for the Eating Attitudes Test-26. Key themes identified included a desire to understand the ED, acute awareness of ED behaviors and thoughts, challenges in understanding noneating-related obsessive behaviors, increase in family conflict and arguments, compassion and concern for the AED, feelings of loss and sacrifice, overwhelming sense of responsibility for the AED, and a sense of pervasiveness of the ED in all aspects of their lives. The siblings' accounts of these themes were noted to be fraught with contradictions. Eighty percent reported that their QOL was negatively affected by the onset of their siblings' ED. Clinical attention and further research into the experience of siblings of adolescents with ED is needed.

The Relations Between Parents' Smoking, General Parenting, Parental Smoking Communication, and Adolescents' Smoking

The present study examined whether the associations between general parenting practices (i.e., support, behavioral control, and psychological control) and parental smoking on the one hand and older and younger siblings' smoking on the other were mediated by parental smoking communication (i.e., frequency and quality of parent–adolescent communication concerning smoking-related issues). The focus of this paper was on examining whether these associations of parental actions and adolescents' smoking were different in older and younger siblings within the family. Participants were 428 Dutch families (mother, father, and their 2 adolescent siblings aged 13–17). The results of parent and adolescent reports indicated that general parenting practices and parental smoking were associated with parental smoking communication, which, in turn, was related with adolescent smoking. The magnitude of the associations between parenting and adolescent smoking did not differ between older and younger siblings. Supportive parents were generally more likely to engage in a high quality communication about smoking with their adolescent children; this was related to a lower likelihood to smoke. Parents who exerted psychological control were more likely to talk more frequently with their adolescents on smoking matters, which in turn, relates to a higher likelihood to smoke. Also, smoking parents were less likely to have high-quality parent–adolescent communication that relates to higher likelihoods to smoke. In general, the findings were similar across reporters. Implications for prevention are addressed.

Do Parents and Best Friends Influence the Normative Increase in Adolescents' Alcohol Use at Home and Outside the Home?

The present study explored the possible impact of parental supervision of adolescents' alcohol use and drinking with parents on concurrent and prospective associations between adolescents' drinking at home and drinking outside the home. The impact of drinking with their best friend, parental drinking behaviors, and sibling influence on adolescent alcohol use were also examined, as well as whether drinking at home and outside the home predicted problem drinking. We used three waves of longitudinal full-family data (fathers, mothers, and two adolescent siblings; N = 428). Bi-directional effects between drinking at home and drinking outside the home were found for both adolescents, with drinking in one setting predicting drinking in another setting over time. Both drinking at home and drinking outside the home predicted subsequent problem drinking. These associations did not differ as a function of adolescents drinking with parents or their best friend or of parental supervision of adolescents' alcohol use. Only adolescents' gender seemed to moderate these effects but solely in midadolescence. For 15-year-old boys (but not for girls), at-home drinking predicted outside-the-home drinking 1 year later. Taken together, adolescents' alcohol use increases over time, regardless of setting or with whom they drink. According to these results, prevention workers should focus on making parents more aware of their role in delaying the age at drinking onset.

Risk and Protective Effects of Sibling Relationships among African American Adolescents.

This study investigated associations between sibling relationships and adjustment among 179 African American adolescent siblings (controlling for family factors), and tested moderating effects of familism values and birth order. Two-level random intercept models revealed that familism values moderated sibling relationship-adjustment linkages, suggesting that youth who reported both strong familism values and harmonious sibling relationships showed the most positive outcomes. These effects were more consistent for older than for younger siblings. Findings highlight the role of cultural values and birth order in shaping sibling influence processes.

Rearing environmental influences on religiousness: An investigation of adolescent adoptees

Religiousness is widely considered to be a culturally transmitted trait. However, twin studies suggest that religiousness is genetically influenced in adulthood, although largely environmentally influenced in childhood/adolescence. We examined genetic and environmental influences on a self-report measure of religiousness in a sample consisting of 284 adoptive families (two adopted adolescent siblings and their rearing parents); 208 biological families (two full biological adolescent siblings and their parents); and 124 mixed families (one adopted and one biological adolescent sibling and their parents). A sibling-family model was fit to the data to estimate genetic, shared environmental, and nonshared environmental effects on religiousness, as well as cultural transmission and assortative mating effects. Religiousness showed little evidence of heritability and large environmental effects, which did not vary significantly by gender. This finding is consistent with the results of twin studies of religiousness in adolescent and preadolescent samples.

Links between nonshared friendship experiences and adolescent siblings' differences in aspirations

Using a sibling design, this study examined the association between adolescents' friendship experiences and their aspirations for self-acceptance, affiliation, and financial success. We hypothesized that adolescent siblings would differ in their aspirations and that unique experiences in friendships would be associated with these differences. Within our sample of 102 same-sex sibling pairs (mean age older sibling 16 years, younger sibling 14 years), only a small degree of sibling similarity was found for aspirations as well as friendship experiences. Self-acceptance and affiliation were positively linked to general friendship positivity as well as to positive features of the adolescents' closest friend. Bivariate model-fitting techniques revealed that nonshared processes (i.e., unique to each child in the family) explained these links between friendship experiences and aspirations. The results indicate that growing up in one home and being socialized by the same parents does not make adolescent siblings similar in their aspirations but rather that nonshared experiences like those with close friends are related to aspiration dissimilarity of siblings.

The Perception of Similarities and Differences Among Adolescent Siblings

During adolescence, identity development reaches its crucial point. Siblings foster the search for their own uniqueness through social comparisons. These comparisons can lead to identification (“I am like you.” or “We are special.”) as well as deidentification (“I am different from you!”). In this study, 204 siblings were interviewed to determine in which aspects/traits twins and nontwins perceive similarities and differences between them and their siblings. The number of similarities and differences mentioned was also examined as well as the frequency with which upward, downward, and neutral comparisons are used. It was assumed that monozygotic twins in particular differ from other twins (dizygotic twins of the same and opposite sex) and nontwins (siblings with a maximum age difference of 24 months) due to different developmental conditions. For all siblings, results show that the areas in which similarities and differences are perceived differ. Similarities are mainly perceived in interests and shared abilities/activities, whereas differences are mainly described with the help of character traits, looks, and athletic abilities. Monozygotic twins perceive fewer differences between them than do the other groups but do not perceive more similarities. Twins and nontwins do not differ in the frequency with which upward, downward, and neutral comparisons are used. Implications of these results are being critically discussed.

The Premorbid Adjustment Scale as a measure of developmental compromise in patients with schizophrenia and their healthy siblings

Schizophrenia is associated with subtle developmental compromise, but the degree to which this is also associated with heritability and genetic risk is uncertain. The goal of the current study was to investigate the childhood, adolescent, and early adulthood social and academic function of patients with schizophrenia, their healthy siblings, and normal controls, using the Premorbid Adjustment Scale (PAS). Generalized Estimating Equations were conducted to account for nesting of subjects within families. Patients ( N = 286) scored significantly worse than their healthy siblings ( N = 315) at every age period; siblings scored significantly worse than controls ( N = 261) at every age period. In probands, PAS scores got worse after early adolescence while control and proband scores improved after late adolescence. Furthermore, patient PAS scores significantly predicted the scores of their own discordant siblings in childhood and late adolescence. This effect approached significance in early adolescence and in the general scale. Thus, the most premorbidly impaired patients tended to have non-ill siblings with worse premorbid adjustment scores than the siblings of less impaired probands. The results suggest that both patients and many of their siblings share poor adjustment in childhood and adolescence, possibly due to shared genetic or environmental risk factors.

Sibling interaction and symbolic capital: Toward a theory of political micro-economy

Older siblings play a role in their younger siblings’ language socialization by ratifying or rejecting linguistic behavior. In addition, older siblings may engage in a struggle to maintain their dominant position in the family hierarchy. This struggle is seen through the lens of language and political economy as a struggle for symbolic capital. Bilingual adolescent sibling interactions are analyzed as expressions both of identity and of symbolic power. This paper proposes a theory of political micro-economy, by which analysts may trace connections between broad societal structures and structures of face-to-face interaction.

Adolescent Siblings of Individuals with an Autism Spectrum Disorder: Testing a Diathesis-Stress Model of Sibling Well-Being

The purpose of this study was to test a diathesis-stress model of well-being for siblings who have a brother or sister with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Data were collected from 57 adolescents and their mothers. Sisters reported higher levels of depressive and anxiety symptoms than brothers. Having a family history of ASDs was associated with depressive, but not anxiety, symptoms. A high level of maternal depression was also associated with more depressive and anxiety symptoms. A diathesis-stress model was partially supported, primarily through the findings that sibling sub-threshold autism characteristics were associated with depressive and anxiety symptoms in siblings, but only in the presence of a high number of stressful life events.