It may sound surprising, but relationship dynamics with romantic partners can have their roots in sibling relationships. Sibling relationship patterns often are overlooked as a possible source for adults’ romantic relationship successes or difficulties, but sibling relationships have been shown to have important connections to the quality of adults’ relationships with others.
Most individuals in the U.S. grow up with a sibling who is within two years of age, and sibling relationships can last longer than those with parents, friends, and romantic partners. Siblings are important to individuals’ lives across the lifespan, having an enduring impact on well-being and relationship experiences with others. This is because individuals’ interactions with their siblings help build patterns of expectations and behaviors, such as how to be supportive or behave during a conflict, that are extended to relationship dynamics with others.
Interactions with siblings provide some of the earliest opportunities to learn and practice prosocial and conflict management skills with a peer. In childhood, siblings tend to spend a lot of time together, more than with parents and friends, which offers numerous chances for expressing warmth and empathy, listening, and sharing but also discovering areas of disagreement, disregard, and a lack of fairness.
Like romantic relationships, sibling relationships are characterized by emotional intensity........