As mums, we don’t like to think that we have a favourite child, insisting we love them all equally – but that won’t stop the kids thinking they are the favourite.
However, while previous studies have shown that 60% of mothers actually do have a favourite, new research has shown that the preferred child is more likely to be depressed.
According to the research, being the target of sibling rivalry and feeling obligated to their parents can actually take its toll on the favourite child - the negative side of being mum's number one.
Talking about the results, Professor Jill Suitor from Purdue University in Indiana, who led the study said: "There is a cost for those who perceive they are the closest emotionally to their mothers, and these children report higher depressive symptoms."
Researchers collected data from 725 adult children with an average age of 49, and analysed levels of emotional closeness, conflict, pride and disappointment. Sadly, the results showed that those who felt closer to their mother felt less closer to their siblings.
“Further, tension with siblings has been found to be especially high when adult children are both favoured and provide care to their mothers – a context that is particularly common when mothers are in their late 70s and 80s, as is the case in the present study,” the authors wrote in the Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences.
"We find it particularly intriguing that siblings continue to engage in such a high degree of social comparison even well into their middle years," they added.
A previous study carried out by Professor Suitor and Dr Gilligan found that mothers tended to favour a child who they think are most similar to them, in terms of values and beliefs.
