Sibling Relationships in Early Adulthood: the Associations Between Social Statuses and Sibling Ties
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SIBLING RELATIONSHIPS IN EARLY ADULTHOOD: THE ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN SOCIAL STATUSES AND SIBLING TIES Lindsey L. Aldrich A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS December 2016 Committee: Kei Nomaguchi, Advisor Karen Benjamin Guzzo I-Fen Lin ii ABSTRACT Kei Nomaguchi, Advisor Early adulthood is a period when individuals begin to obtain major social statuses, such as finishing school, starting a full-time job, getting married, or becoming a parent. How these social statuses may influence the quality of sibling relationships has rarely been examined. Sibling relationships are common, likely some of the longest relationships most individuals who have siblings will experience, and can be a source of support throughout the life course. Thus, it is important to decipher factors that influence sibling relationship quality. This thesis project uses matched sibling dyads data from the sibling sample in Wave III of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (N = 1,451), to examine the associations between social statuses— education, employment, marriage or cohabitation, and parenthood—and five aspects of sibling relationship quality, including emotional closeness, conflict, direct contact, indirect contact, and turning to one’s sibling for help or advice, among respondents aged 18 to 26. Supporting the time demands perspective, the respondents’ or the siblings’ marriage or cohabitation is related to less direct or indirect contact and fewer fights between siblings. When one sibling is in college, the other sibling tends to report less direct contact. In contrast, supporting the role expansion perspective, older siblings’ parental status is related to younger siblings’ reports of more contact and emotional closeness with the sibling. Those who have a college degree are more likely than those without it to have more indirect contact with their siblings. These findings suggest interconnectedness of siblings’ lives during the transition to adulthood. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would first like to thank my advisor and thesis chair, Kei Nomaguchi, for her patience, guidance, and kindness. Dr. Nomaguchi shaped this challenging process into an invaluable learning experience, offering her expertise and encouragement every step of the way. Through her mentorship, I have become a more organized, cognizant, and critical sociologist. Next, I would like to thank my thesis committee, Karen Benjamin Guzzo and I-Fen Lin, as they have offered thoughtful and constructive comments, and have trained me to be more methodologically minded in my research. I would also like to thank Marshal Neal Fettro for his time and efforts, as I quite literally could not have completed the coding for this thesis project without his instruction. Further, I would like to thank all of my lovely and encouraging friends, family members, and fellow sociologists who have offered their kind and motivating words throughout this entire process, particularly Taylor and Kasey who were always willing to be there for me in whatever way I needed. It is so reassuring to know others believe in you, when you are struggling to believe in yourself. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................... 1 LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................................. 3 Sibling Ties during the Transition to Adulthood .................................................... 3 The Link Between Social Roles and Sibling Relationship Quality ......................... 5 Education ................................................................................................... 6 Employment............................................................................................... 7 Relationship Status .................................................................................... 8 Parental Status ........................................................................................... 9 Possible Confounding Factors................................................................................ 10 Birth order ................................................................................................. 10 Sibling types .............................................................................................. 11 Gender composition of sibling dyads ......................................................... 12 Geographic distance ................................................................................... 12 Age and age gap between siblings ............................................................. 12 Race/Ethnicity............................................................................................ 13 Sibling relationship quality in adolescence ................................................ 13 THE CURRENT STUDY ................................................................................................. 14 DATA AND METHODS .................................................................................................. 16 Data …………………. .......................................................................................... 16 Dependent Variables.............................................................................................. 18 Independent Variables ........................................................................................... 19 v Control Variables .................................................................................................. 19 Analytic Strategy ................................................................................................... 20 RESULTS ........................................................................................................................ 22 Closeness ............................................................................................................. 22 Quarrel ................................................................................................................. 24 Direct Contact ...................................................................................................... 26 Indirect Contact .................................................................................................... 29 Aid Seeking .......................................................................................................... 31 Summary of Findings ........................................................................................... 33 DISCUSSION ................................................................................................................. 35 REFERENCES ......... ....................................................................................................... 40 APPENDIX A .......... ....................................................................................................... 45 1 INTRODUCTION The transition to adulthood is a period when young people begin to experience a series of life events—breaking away from their family of origin, finishing school, starting full-time work, beginning to live with a partner or getting married, and becoming a parent (Conger & Little, 2010). Prior research has examined determinants of occurrence and timing of these life events and how these life events influence young adults’ economic well-being, as well as physical and mental health (e.g., Settersten, 2012; Sironi & Furstenberg, 2012). Relatively less is known regarding how the social roles and statuses young adults begin to acquire through these life events during young adulthood—i.e., educational attainment, employment hours, marriage or cohabitation, and parenthood—influence relationships with members of their family of origin. In particular, although past research has examined how young people’s newly acquired social statuses influence intergenerational ties (e.g., Kaufman & Uhlenberg, 1998), little research has focused on sibling relationship quality. This is a critical gap in the literature, considering that a majority of adults in the United States have at least one sibling, and the relationship one has with a sibling is likely one of the longest-lasting relationships an individual will experience (Milevsky & Heerwagen, 2013; Stocker, Lanthier, & Furman, 1997). Further, as close social ties enhance mental and physical health in general (Umberson & Montez, 2010), research has shown that having a close relationship with siblings in early adulthood is related to better well-being and mental health—less loneliness, less depression, more life satisfaction and more self-esteem (Milevsky, 2005; Sherman, Lansford, & Volling, 2006). As individuals experience the many life events associated with early adulthood, it may be particularly important for their well-being to have supportive, quality relationships, specifically with their siblings. Given the benefits 2 associated with sibling relationship quality, it is important to better understand factors that influence sibling relationship quality. This thesis examines factors that influence sibling relationships during the transition to adulthood, focusing on the period when individuals are aged 18 to 26, using unique sibling data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health). Drawing on the life course perspective (Elder, 1994) and role theories (Barnet & Hyde; Goode, 1960; Sarkisian & Gerstel,