Effect Of Birth Order On Academic Resilience: Deduced From The Output Of A Survey

Abstract

Adolescence is stated to be a period of stress and strain, not because the individuals are in the midst of chaos and confusions, rather they are at the crucial time of choosing the best among the good ones to structure their own future. It is the stage, in the life of every student to pass through while they are right in the mid of the intermediate course of study. It is the most colourful phase of life woven with dare-devil enactments.  The play of academic resilience is at its best and as such they complete the most difficult learning tasks in the shortest duration and smile at the toughest challenges with enhanced inclination for more and more participation in class/school activities (Finn & Rock, 1997; Capalla & Weinstein, 2001).  Moreover, adolescence is the stage wherein the psychological differences among the young ones, observed ever since infancy will be seen prominent in the case of core characteristics at the stage of adolescence, and start getting blurred with greater and greater exposure to life experiences. Psychologically, the birth order is said to have its influence over the psychological characteristics of children and likely to perpetuate in them throughout their life time. Though another school of thought does not subscribe to the concept fully, the researchers convinced of the several arguments put forth in favour of the influence of the birth order, have marked it as a research gap and pose the research question–Will there be a possibility to examine the genuineness in the noted differences in regard to academic resilience and its dimensions of the students of different birth order? It prompted the researchers to prepare the ready reckoner comprising three Tables–1, 2, 3, with Table-1 providing the research identified traits and characteristics of the first borns juxtapose to the corresponding constituents forming academic resilience. Likewise, ready reckoner Table-2 and ready reckoner Table-3 furnishes the traits/characteristics predominant in the second borns and third borns respectively along with constituents of academic resilience. The ready reckoner is used for answering why and how of the research outcomes – the levels of academic resilience and its dimensions in terms of birth order and statistical differences noted in their means among the sub-samples of birth order. It has been concluded that there are certain deviations in the first borns, while the middle borns and last borns stand almost to the standard expected of them in the traits, characteristics assessed.