Does Being the Oldest Make You More Likely to Be a Leader?

I don't think so at all. Some people suggest that birth order can play a role in that, but I don't really buy that as a hard and fast rule, either.

My eldest is not really a leader. He is a peacemaker.
My second born is more of a leader, independent and does her own thing and doesn't care who has a different opinion about it.

But as far as being oldest "in the class"? No. Not at all related, in my opinion.

i don't think so. there are studies that indicate very large over-arching trends, and they're not a bad place to start. but individuals have so many mitigating factors that you really can't predict much outside a very squishy generality.
khairete
S.

No. That would assume that the oldest had the most dominate personality.

No, I think it has more to do with what type of personality the child has.

I think it is more personality than age.

Hah. Nope.

My younger brother started school late, plus was held back in 1st grade... So he was nearly 2 years older an most of his classmates.

He is SUCH a follower, it's ridiculous. He seriously has zero leadership capabilities.

Growing up I was usually one of the youngest in my class, and during elementary, middle, and high school I was more of a middle-ground type of girl. Now I have returned to school, and find myself taking on the leadership role more than ever... But I think that has more to do with being a mom and used to running a household than it does with my age.

I think there are other factors that may make your child a leader in the classroom. Some of those might be their birth order in their family and the environment that they have grown up - -which might indicate how independent they are and how mature they are. Another factor might be their ability to communicate with others and their ability to persuade others.

Research indicates that more older children in the class lead than the younger ones. Same for children's sports teams, dance class, etc. The thinking is that some of that may be maturity, some may be size, some of it may be that more is expected of the older children. Now of course, that's not each individual child. But given hundreds of children, the stats for leadership go to the older ones.

Nope! I believe it's a personality.

I've been in the classroom 14 yrs and I've seen many younger siblings end up as leaders.

As for myself... My one and only child , daughter who turns 20 in Dec.... Has always been a leader, very focused and goal oriented.

If by leader, you mean bossy, sometimes. True leaders lift others up to be successful. The daughter is the older of our two, but she is not the leader of anyone. She is very shy and keeps to herself. But some of the oldest kids she knows who parents consider "leaders" are really just bossy and demand their way - boys and girls. My son is the oldest in his class, but he's not a leader. He's not a follower and he's comfortable doing his own thing, but I wouldn't call him a leader.

Personally, I don't think most of the kids are aware of who is the oldest or youngest.

I agree it's more personality than age.

Not necessarily. My 2nd grade daughter is one of the youngest in her class (a late July birthday). We have always heard from her teachers that she is one of the leaders in her class.

As a teacher, I have sometimes looked at a student's birthdate expecting to see that the student is the youngest (because of immature behaviors) only to find that the student is actually one of the oldest.

I think a lot of the students who are positive leaders have had positive role models, have had their leadership qualities acknowledged, and have been given opportunities to be leaders. They are confident in themselves and in their abilities. They know how to empathize and sympathize with others.

The negative leaders have had negative role models, feel a need to "prove" themselves, or are attention seeking. They haven't been taught leadership skills or had them pointed out to them. It is usually their charisma that fuels their leadership. They put themselves first and don't care how their actions affect others.

Many of the followers have "helicopter" parents who have done almost everything for their kids. They haven't let them take risks or fail. The kids don't have confidence in themselves or what they can do. Some of them are shy or deal with anxiety. They lack empathy and sympathy. They are behaviorally and emotionally more immature than their peers.

I think age is a very small part of leadership skills. As an adult, the best leader I deal with on a regular basis is almost young enough to be my daughter.

Nope. My daughter is the oldest in our family, but one of the youngest in her class, she has a mid-June birthday. She has always been a leader. Both of my boys are also spring babies (March and April) and they are both leaders in their classes as well.

I don't think so. I think it's a personality thing. I DO think that only children tend to be leaders though.

I was in the middle in school and I was a leader. I am also the leader amongst my siblings and I am the youngest. My son was in a grade 2/3 split class and was a class leader in grade two.

Not necessarily.
It depends on the kid's personality.
It could also have the opposite effect, s/he could feel self conscious about being bigger than everyone else, and as s/he gets older some kids may assume s/he was held back a year.
No guarantees when it comes to development, it's a process, with factors both biological and environmental.

There are a lot of studies but as you can see there are always exceptions to the expectations.

I think it can also be life experiences. as well as expectations from the family. The first child may be a boy, but the first girl is expected to be more mature and takes on a lot of the decisions and care giving. So she ends up being a leader.

And then there are children that are just a take charge type of children.
Some children are better about making decisions. Others contemplate the options.

Also the age difference can also play a part. A child that has been an only child for many years and then is expected to help with the younger child, can learn the tools to be a leader very easily.

But the baby of the family who has watched each older sibling grow up learns a lot from the older siblings watching them taking chances, having failures and successes.

No. I didn't see that in my own class and haven't with either of my kids (youngest is a junior).

It might make you less likely to follow but not necessarily a leader.
I think leader/follower relationships both depend on a certain amount of insecurity - they NEED each other somehow for validation.
A secure individual who's not afraid to do his own thing whether people follow him or not is fine by me.

No

Being allowed to make right and wrong decisions and having the natural consequences teaches kids to make better choices when they're adults.

If a child is told and told and told and told to leave their shoes on in the van that the concrete is hot or the snow is cold doesn't teach them why they should leave their shoes on in the van because you're tired of hunting for their shoes and putting them back on over and over and over.

Letting that child get out of the van barefoot and walk to the front door in the snow will teach them, for the rest of their life, that not keeping their shoes on is a bad idea.

If a child never gets the normal consequences for their actions they never learn and are stunted in maturity. Being a leader usually comes from having parents who let them make mistakes and learn from them.

Being the oldest in their class means they're going to be taunted for being a head taller than their classmates by the end of 6th grade, that they'll have acne before anyone else in their class and get teased. It means they'll develop sexually before the others in their class are even aware of that.

Kids need to be with their peers. They need to be 5 when they start kindergarten and 18 when they graduate school. That way you only have a few months of trying to make a legal adult "mind" you until they go off to college or some other form of training.

It's so much easier to have kids with other kids their age.

Google birth order traits. Fascinating! Although I was a gap child, I don't think I have many of the traits.