Sibship Size and Children’s Family Resources

Abstract

Despite ample evidence on the negative association between sibship size and educational attainment, relatively fewer studies have directly addressed the immediate effect of sibship size on children’s family resources. With data from a nationally representative survey in China, this study estimated the effects of sibship size on various family resources for Chinese adolescents between ages 10 and 15, with a particular interest in the possible role of gender on resource allocation. Consistent with prior research on educational attainment, sibship size was negatively associated with the amount of resources a child received from the family. Siblings who were closer in ages had equal or more negative effects on family resources a child received compared with widely spaced siblings. A more rapid decrease was observed in economic resources than in interpersonal resources. Furthermore, brothers showed greater negative effects than sisters. The current findings provided direct evidence for the resource dilution theory.

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