It's official, second born children are more likely to be criminals

Sibling rivalry is rife in pretty much every family with more than one child.

It doesn’t help that research constantly pits one against the other(s). For instance, studies have deemed older siblings more successful and youngest siblings funnier. A new study has gone one step further – and found that second-born siblings are more likely to be trouble-makers.

Researchers examined data from Florida and Denmark, and found that second-born boys are more likely to rebel and cause mischief.

The report states that second-born boys are 20 to 40 per cent more likely to be disciplined in school and commit crimes - particularly violent crimes - compared to first-born boys.

This, the researchers argue, is because their role model is a young child, rather than first-borns, whose role models are their parents. And older siblings may benefit themselves from being a role model to younger siblings, and teaching them.

They also typically get less attention from their mothers than first-borns did.

The report states:

In addition to the fact that first-borns experience undivided attention until the arrival of the second-born, we discovered that the arrival of the second-born child has the potential to extend the early-childhood parental investment in the first-born child.

More: How many siblings you have may affect your career