RICHMOND, Va -- If you grew up as an only child or with few siblings, you may have been given grief from those who grew up with many siblings about how much fun you missed out on. A group of economists says, though, that you may be better off in life because of your small family.
In the newly-published study, economists looked at 26 years of data on parents and children. They found with each additional sibling, each child had their cognitive abilities go down, while behavioral problems increased.
For girls, the bigger impact was on cognitive abilities, while boys showed bigger behavioral problems.
The effects continued later on after childhood: children with many siblings would have less education, and make less money.
The economists say it's because the resources and attention of parents are stretched thinner with each child.
