The Effects are Wide in Their Reach
If birth order is in fact related to personal levels of motivation, as past research in accordance with student interviews would suggest, then the effects of birth order can be understood as being quite far-reaching. From landing that perfect job to excelling on the golf course, levels of motivation are absolutely critical for everyday functioning in an adult-world setting. The following is just a few realms that birth order has been shown to have an influence on through personal levels of motivation.
The most obvious way that birth order might affect success through motivation is that of employment. It is undeniable that, for the most part, the people who are fortunate enough to work in the best paying positions are those who are the most motivated and who put in the hard work necessary for such a position. Starting with high levels of mental stimulation at a young age followed by academic success in the classroom, the road to success through employment is one that is fairly consistent throughout a person's life (Kessler 1991).
Surprisingly, birth order has been shown to play a substantial role in success as a result of motivation in the realm of athletics. In a study of major league baseball players who have siblings also in the major leagues, it was shown that batting averages and total hit counts are significantly higher for first born children relative to the second born. Likewise, for siblings that are both pitchers, the older brother was found on average to have a significantly lower earned run average. As pictured on the right, Jeff Weaver and his younger brother Jered are an example of such a phenomenon. This study suggests that on average, a child born that is earlier into a family is more likely to experience athletic success relative to his or her younger siblings. While exceptions such as the Venus and Serena Williams can occur, this study is meant to shed light on siblings on average. Moreover, research has shown that people with experience with a successful athletic team are more likely to do well financially than those without experience (Barber et al. 2001).
While employment and athletics represent two highly researched concepts at seemingly opposite ends of the spectrum, the comparison is meant to show that levels of motivation can affect almost every part of a person's life and a list of such things that motivation influences could go on forever.
