If you have a sister, she might be the reason why you turned out to be a good person! All those fights over the remote control, clothes and who was taking too long in the bathroom have positive impacts after all!
Laura Padilla-Walker, a researcher at Brigham Young University in Utah, told NBC News: “Even after you account for parents’ influence, siblings do matter in unique ways. They give kids something that parents don’t.”
Studies also show that having a sister can help you make wiser decisions, resolve conflicts faster, and be more emphatic and nurturing. Having a sister can also improve your cognitive functions!
Alex Jensen, the author of research into sibling relationships, told Huffington Post: “They help you develop social skills, like communication, compromise, and negotiations. Even sibling conflict, if it is minor, can promote healthy development.”
It was also found in a 2010 study that having a sister can prevent you from feeling guilty, lonely, fearful, self-conscious, and unloved.
Jensen added: “What we know suggests that sisters play a role in promoting positive mental health, and later in life they often do more to keep families in contact with one another after the parents pass.”
Padilla-Walker explained: “Even if there is a little bit of fighting, as long as they have affection, the positive will win out. If siblings get in a fight, they have to regulate emotions. That’s an important skill to learn for later in life.”
Studies also found that guys with sisters are better at communicating with women because they have had some practice!
“Some research suggests that having a sibling who is a different gender from you can be a real benefit in adolescence,” Jensen explained. “Many of those sibling pairs become closer during the teen years because they become good sources of information about the opposite sex.”
The study stressed the importance of making sure children end their quarrels in a positive way. “For parents of younger kids, the message is to encourage sibling affection. Once they get to adolescence, it’s going to be a big protective factor,” Padilla-Walker said.
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