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A case study on sibling rivalry and the use of a social

skills training model
Michelle Maiorano

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A CASE STUDY ON SIBLING RIVALRY AND THE USE OF A SOCIAL SKILLS
TRAINING MODEL

by
Michelle Maiorano

A Thesis

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the

Master of Arts Degree
of
The Graduate School
at
Rowan University
May 4, 2010

Thesis Chair: John Klanderman, Ph.D. and Roberta Dihoff, Ph.D.

2010 Michelle Maiorano

 ABSTRACT

Michelle Maiorano
A CASE STUDY ON SIBLING RIVARLY AND THE USE OF SOCIAL SKILLS
TRAINING MODEL
2009/10
John Klanderman, Ph.D. and Roberta Dihoff, Ph.D.
Master of Arts in School Psychology

The purpose of this study was to use social skills training on an individual child to

enhance the relationship with her siblings. The social skills sessions focused on factors

such warmth, rivalry, conflict and status/power between the two siblings. These were

measured by the Sibling Rivalry Questionnaire which the mother filled out before the

sessions began and after they were completed. The results did not find a major difference

between the pre and post tests. Warmth increased slightly, rivalry decreased slightly,

there was no difference in the amount of conflict, and there was a slight decrease in

relative status/power from pre to post test. These factors did not seem to be affected by

the social skills sessions and therefore did not improve the sibling relationship.
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

List of Figures

CHAPTER

I. Need
Purpose
Hypotheses

History
Definitions
Assumptions
Limitations
Summary
II. Causes of Sibling Conflict

Effects of Sibling Conflict

Parental Responses to Sibling Rivalry

Social Skills Training

Social Skills Training and Sibling Relationships

III. Participants
Design
Procedure
Measures

Analysis
Summary
IV. Findings
V. Introduction 24

Interpretation of Findings 24

Limitations 25

Conclusions 25

Future Study 26
References 27
 LIST OF FIGURES

FIGURE PAGE

Figure 4.1 Warmth 21

Figure 4.2 Rivalry 22

Figure 4.3 Conflict 22

Figure 4.4 Relative Status/Power 23

 Chapter I

Need

Family relationships may be one of the most important factors to focus on

because people are surrounded by members of their family from the day they are born

and many years following their birth. The dynamics of a family are difficult to

understand because every family is different in how they relate to one another. Also,

family relations have an influence of later ones in life and one of the most crucial

relationships to look at are the ones between siblings. A sibling relationship can

ultimately benefit or destroy the family as a whole so it is crucial find ways to facilitate

the relationship between siblings.

Purpose

The purpose of the study was to use social skills training on an individual child to

enhance the relationship with her siblings. Past research on aiding the sibling relationship

has mainly focused on the child rearing practices of the parent, but less research has

looked upon teaching the child new social skills. By increasing the positive interactions

between siblings, it could ultimately benefit children's relationships in the future and

create a healthier family life.

Hypotheses

The child who completes the social skills training will have increased warmth,

decreased sibling rivalry, less sibling conflict, and reduced status/power differential

between siblings.
History

The foundation of this paper was based upon past research that used social skills

training as a technique to improve sibling relationships. This study replicated a previous

experimental study by Kramer and Radey entitled 'Improving Sibling Relationships

Among Young Children: A Social Skills Training Model.' This study looked at new

approach to improving sibling relationships by using social skills training model. The

researchers hypothesized that children who received social skills training would have

more positive interactions with their siblings in comparison to children in the control

group. Twenty-one families were randomly assigned to the experimental group and

twenty-one were assigned to the control group. A videotape was used to record the

interactions of the sibling before experiment took place. During four sessions the

experimental group was taught 6 social skills: how to initiate play appropriately, how to

accept play, how to refuse play, perspective taking, how to deal with angry feelings, and

how to manage conflict. A model by McGinnis and Goldstein (1990) was use to teach

these skills. Post measure tests were used after the treatment, such as videotaping the

sibling behavior and questionnaires distributed to parents which assessed the sibling

relationship. The Sibling Relationship Questionnaire (Furman and Buhrmester, 1985)

was administered to fathers and mothers one week before and after the training sessions.

The results indicated suggested that the social skills training may be associated with the

parents' reports of increased warmth, decreased sibling rivalry, stable levels of

competitive and agonistic behavior, lower levels of problematic behaviors and lower

status/power differential. This research laid the framework for the present study except
that this study will use the social skill training for an intervention on one child rather than

a group.

Definitions

Sibling rivalry- competition, animosity, and negative behavior among brothers

and sisters.

Assumptions

It was assumed in the present study that the parents were honest in their

assessments of the child's behavior so that the training could be accurately tested. Also it

was assumed that the parents were not biased toward any individual sibling.

Limitations:

There are several limitations to this study. One limitation is that since this is a

case study, it lacked external validity and therefore was difficult to generalize through the

population. Also, the social skills program only consisted of 40 minute long sessions one

a week, and it may be more beneficial to include more training sessions. Another

limitation was that there were a limited amount of social skills evaluated.

Summary

The need for the present study is to build a more positive relationship between

siblings at a young age in order to foster healthy relationships in the future. Past research

has focused very much on what parents can do to reduce the conflict between siblings but

not many studies have looked at the use of social skills. The foundation of this study was

based upon an experimental study by Kramer and Radey (1997) entitled "Improving

Sibling Relationships Among Young Children: A Social Skills Training Mode." The

affect of the social skills was rated using the Sibling Rivalry Questionnaire which the
mother filled out. It was assumed for this study that the mother was honest in her

assessment of the child's behavior. Some limitations of the study included lack of

external validity, limited amount of social skills evaluated, and lack of time when

teaching the social skills.

 Chapter II

Family dynamics has been studied for years because of the importance it has over

the individual. One of the most influential relationships for a person is the one with his or

her sibling. The sibling relationship is one of the longest lasting relationships in most

people's lives. In childhood, siblings often spend more time together than they do with

their parents (Crouter, McHale 1989). This may be the reason for why arguments

between siblings were the most common type of conflict found in families (Straus,

Gelles, & Steinmetz, 1980). Research consists of many possible factors that contribute to

sibling rivalry as well as the effects later on in life. Resolving sibling conflict have been

designed primarily around teaching parents the skills to intervene but little research has

focused on teaching children the skills to form a more healthy relationship. Therefore,

this section is separated into 5 main topics; the causes of sibling rivalry the effects of

sibling rivalry, parental responses, social skills training in general, and social skills

training in sibling relationships.

Causes of Sibling Conflict

Research on sibling rivalry is quite diverse. For example Moser, Jones, Zaorski,

and Mirsalimi (2005) studied jealousy, envy, guilt, and resentment between siblings and

found that rivalry stems chiefly from competition over attention from the caretaker. Once

there was another child added to a family, the mother's love had to be shared between

multiple offspring which caused conflict. The only child becomes the older child and

5
moves from the central position of interest to one which requires sharing (Neubauer,

1983). Some view the competitive nature of siblings to be a negative outcome of sibling

rivalry. However, sibling rivalry could have positive consequences because children often

learn skills from siblings such as sharing and compromising.

Parental attention and affection was not the only reason for sibling conflict. The

most common issue for sibling was sharing personal possessions for both older and

younger siblings (McGuire, Manke, Eftekhari, & Dunn, 2000). Parent behaviors were

rarely cited as sources of conflict. This could suggest that sibling rivalry is not primarily

influenced by parental love but that siblings have their own issues that are separate from

those involving their parents.

Some other factors that might be expected to affect sibling conflict are age,

gender, and biological kinship. For example, Erel, Margolin, and John (1998) studied 73

pairs of siblings between 3 and 6 years of age to assess the importance of age differences

in sibling conflict. The siblings were videotaped in a laboratory setting while the mother

filled out questionnaires concerning her marital relationship and their relationship with

her children. The results indicated that there was more negative behavior from older

siblings directed at younger siblings than reverse and negative sibling interactions were

linked with negative family interactions. Despite the relatively small age range, the

greater the space between siblings, the greater the warmth the young sibling gave to the

older siblings.

Sex differences also play an important role in sibling relations. Martin and Ross

(2005) hypothesized that male siblings would engage in more physical aggression than
female siblings. The results found that brothers engaged in more physical and verbal

aggression than girls but the most severe forms of aggression were only found when the

children were 2 /2 years of age. However, some forms of physical and verbal aggression

continued to be used by boys as they got older. It was also reported that older siblings,

regardless of gender, engaged in less intense physical aggression directed at a sister,

while younger siblings aggressed more often when conflict was with older brothers.

One might infer that kinship should play a role in the relationships between

siblings. Jankowiak and Diderich (2000) tested the hypothesis that there would be a

closer bond between biological siblings than half siblings. They examined factors such as

family cohesion, solidarity, and sibling rivalry. They hypothesized that sibling closeness

would vary by gender, age and personality but not genetic relatedness. The participants

consisted of 32 polygamous families where biological and non-biological siblings were

numerous and the data was collected over seven years. The results revealed a difference

in emotional attachment and affection between full and half siblings. There was greater

solidarity among full siblings than half siblings.

Sibling conflict is also related to family functioning and well being in general.

Stewart (1990) focused on how the family system can affect individuals in the family and

also the family subsystems, such as the sibling relationship. All families who welcome a

new child face stressors that change the organization of the family in order to

accommodate the new relationship. Even the mere presence of a parent in the room can

have an effect on sibling conflict. Corter, Abramovitch, and Pepler (1983) found that

conflict was higher when the mother was present than when children were alone.

Children also interacted less when their parents were in the room yet had higher rates of

7
conflict. Brody, Stoneman, McCoy, and Forehand (1992) focused on the effects of family

functioning and hypothesized that sibling conflict would be associated with specific

parenting styles, the unequal treatment of siblings and the amount of conflict within the

family. Researchers interviewed 152 children and their parents about the problems they

encountered in the family, how problems were typically resolved and sibling interactions.

The results indicated that when siblings were treated equally during family discussions

about problems, generally there was less sibling conflict.

Pike, Coldwell, and Dunn (2005) also examined how the parents' relationship

with their children affected the siblings' relationship. It was hypothesized that if parent-

child relationships were positive, then sibling relationships would be warmer with less

conflict. Also, it was predicted that positive sibling relationships would result in higher

levels of prosocial behavior. The results found showed that the quality of the sibling

relationship was linked to the older child's family adjustment but not the younger

siblings' adjustment.

The relationship between parents and siblings was also studied by Feinberg,

McHale, Crouter and Cumsille (2003). They predicted that if siblings were treated

differently by their parents than it would result in more positivity in the sibling

relationship over time. The theory behind this prediction was that individual

differentiation between siblings results in less competition and therefore less rivalry.

Participants were families studied over a two year period. The siblings were first and

second born adolescents. The parents and the siblings were interviewed at separate times

and conflict with parents was measured as well as parents' warmth, conflict in the sibling

relationship, and warmth in the sibling relationship. Siblings who had discrete,

8
individualistic and different relationships with their parents had less sibling rivalry and

more sibling warmth. Siblings with little or no difference in their relationships with their

parents showed lower levels of warmth and higher levels of conflict with one another.

But evidence has also supported the opposite between differentiation and conflict.

Stocker, Dunn and Plomin (1989) found that maternal differential behavior was

associated with more conflict between siblings. There tended to be more competition and

less friendliness among the siblings when the mother's control, affection, attention and

responsiveness were different for each child.

The affect of families does not only have an impact on the individual but plays a

role in different elements across the family relationships. Maternal negativity was found

to be a factor that predicted sibling conflict (Jenkins, O'Connor, Dunn, Rasbash, &

Behnke 2005). A mother's negative emotions towards a child did not influence that

particular relationship, but caused that child to have a negative relationship with

their siblings.

The association between parent-child relationships and sibling relationships has a

number of theories surrounding it. Modeling and social learning theory suggest that

children model the behavior with their siblings that they have learned in their

relationships with their parents. Also, the attachment theory suggests that children form

schemas based on their relationships with their parents that they later on shape the

relationships that develop with their siblings (Stocker 2000).

In addition to parent-child relationships having an influence on sibling

relationships, martial relations between the parents can also cause sibling conflict.
Stocker and Youngblade (1999) focused on the relationship between marital conflict and

children's conflict with one another. It was found that marital conflict resulted in less

warmth towards the children and more sibling rivalry. Martial conflict also resulted in

greater hostility by the children towards both parents. This could be because children

model the behavior that they observed between their parents or it could be that parents

are so preoccupied with the conflict in their marriage that they are unavailable to manage

their children's sibling relationships (Stocker 2000).

Effects of Sibling Conflict

In 1932 Piaget suggested that children's social and moral understanding was

influenced by their interactions with other children. This theory has also been continued

in research on sibling relationships. Past research found that preschoolers demonstrate

sociocognitive abilities earlier through their relationships with siblings. They were

capable of interpreting feelings and intentions of their younger siblings (Dunn, 1988).

Another investigation found that children's affection and cooperation towards their

siblings when they were three years of age predicted their ability to take the perspective

of another seven months later (Dunn, Brown, Slomkowski, Tesla, & Youngblade, 1995).

Futhermore, Teti, Bond, and Gibbs (1986) founds that preschool aged children with

siblings more than three years younger than them were more likely to create intellectually

and socially stimulating environments for their younger sibling and further their

opportunities to develop language, reasoning, and problem solving techniques.

Research has also focused on the course of sibling rivalry over time. Stocker,

Burwell, and Briggs (2002) looked at sibling conflict in middle childhood and its
relationship to psychological adjustment in early adolescence. The authors proposed that

conflict between children at the age of 10 would lead to increased depression, anxiety,

and bad behavior two years later. It was also expected that sibling conflict earlier in

childhood would lead to hostility with the mother and adjustment problems later. The

results supported the predictions, suggesting that sibling rivalry either resulted in poor

family adjustment over time, or that anxious, depressed ten year olds were more likely to

be in conflict with their siblings.

Sibling relationships do not end in childhood. They are a constant factor in the

lives of adults as well. In early adulthood, it was found that sibling relationships have

three different components; warmth, conflict and rivalry (Stocker, Lanthier, & Furman,

1997). Also, research found that young adults who rated their sibling relationships as

close had higher scores on measures of emotions and cognitive empathy than those who

had distant relationships with siblings (Shortt & Gottman, 1997). Siblings tend to drift

apart during this time and communicate with each other through their parents until

older adulthood where they renew their relationship and become closer once again

(Cicirelli, 1980).

Research on sibling rivalry has also found a connection between sibling

relationships and individual well-being. Children who had negative sibling relationships

were found to have high levels of anxiety, depression, poor self-esteem and school

adjustment (Dunn, Slomkowski, Beardsall, & Rende, 1994). Also conflict within the

sibling relationship in early adulthood was associated with poor psychological

adjustment, whereas supportive relationships were linked with decreased anxiety and

greater maturity (Stocker, Lanthier, & Furman, 1997). So, forming a healthy positive

11
sibling relationship early in childhood may help to form a beneficial relationship in later

adulthood, even if there is a period of time with little interaction.

Parental Responses to Sibling Rivalry

From past research it is obvious that parents play an important role in the causes

of sibling relationships. But parents' responses to sibling conflict can also be an

influential predictor of future sibling behavior. When the time comes to resolve a sibling

conflict, majority of previous research focused on parental interventions and strategies.

Even before a second child is welcomed into the family, parents are given advice on how

to prepare their firstborn for the arrival of new sibling. Preparation is for a new sibling

was considered to be essential for enhancing the child's adjustment and to avoid negative

reactions towards the sibling that include direct aggression toward the baby, attention

seeking behavior, and regression (Legg, Sherick, & Wadland, 1974). Therefore authors

have agreed that children should be told about the new siblings' arrival well before the

due date because it was found that children responded more negatively when they were

unaware of the new addition to the family. Previous investigations also suggest that

parents can reduce feelings of resentment by reassuring the child that he or she is still

holds a special role in the family, spending time alone with older child, deemphasizing

the significance of the new baby, upholding children's individual rights, and pointing out

similarities between the siblings (Kramer & Ramsburg, 2002). Early experiences with

caring for the new sibling was suggested to give the older child the opportunity to

become more aware of the needs and concerns of others and contribute to perspective

taking abilities (Howe & Ross, 1990).

 Parents are confronted with a dilemma when their children fight because they are

unsure of whether and how to intervene. There has been some research that suggested

parents should not interfere with their children's fights. It was found that children fight to

gain parental attention and if they are left on their own they will settle their conflict

equitably. Interference only worsens the conflict because the children achieve their aim

of gaining attention from their parents and so the behavior continued. The parents'

judgment also leaves one of the children feeling like the loser and so he seeks out revenge

on the other sibling (Levi, Buskila, & Gerzi, 1977). Also, interference from parents

prevented children from working out their own problems and prevented them from

obtaining conflict resolution skills (Brody & Stoneman, 1987). A balance of power can

form if the children are left to work through their own issues.

Other theories have supported the opposing view, which is that a parent can be a

constructive role in their children's arguments. Ihinger (1975) found that when parents

are consistent and logical in the way they enforce rules, the children's conflict will

decrease. The children learn the family values about fairness and equality and therefore

have disputes less often.

Parental responses to sibling conflict can also have an effect on sibling

relationships. Kramer, Perozynski, and Chung (1999) used a microphone system in the

homes of 88 intact families with two children to identify sibling conflict and parental

management strategies. When parents did not intervene there was a higher occurrence of

subsequent sibling conflict. Younger siblings reacted more strongly to this laissez- faire

technique, whereas conflict among older siblings was greatest when their mothers

intervened at any time.

 Ross, Filyer, Lollis, Perlman, and Martin (1994) focused on parents' interventions

in conflicts with their two and four year olds. Their findings indicated that parents

participated in many of the conflicts between their children. Parents intervened on

children's disputes, addressed the children's issues, held position on these issues, and

enforced certain rules. Overall, parents were unbiased in supporting either the younger or

older children. When parents did not intervene, rules were often violated and older

children tended to dominate younger siblings.

Brody, Stoneman, McCoy and Forehand (1992) also found that intervening can be

beneficial to the children especially when discussions are open about the disputes and

focus on problem solving strategies. When the children were in an atmosphere of where

the children's views were considered equally and the parents used moderate levels of

control, it was associated with less conflicted sibling relationships. But, in other research,

it was found that parents beliefs on intervention strategies were not consistent with their

behavior. Perozynski and Kramer (1999) found that parents believed the most effective

way to intervene in their children's disputes was through child centered strategies, for

example, working with the children to resolve the conflict. But they found that the

strategy the parents used most often was passive nonintervention. This was the strategy

they had thought to be least effective and had the least confidence in but yet they used it

most often.

Research has proposed a few strategies for mothers to use to promote prosocial

sibling interactions between preschool aged children and infant siblings (Kramer and

Washo, 1990). The behaviors included high lighting the activities and abilities of one

child to the other, encouraging the older child to help perform care giving tasks for the

14
infant, including the children in activities together, praising positive interactions. It was

found that by mothers using these behaviors there were higher levels of prosoical

behavior but siblings were not able to sustain the positive interaction when the mothers

were absent.

Social Skills Training

Although majority of past research on solutions to sibling conflict has

concentrated on parental intervention, there is still not a clear answer as to whether or not

a parent should interfere with their children's disputes. But previous studies have

suggested that it is possible for children to solve their own disputes without the help of a

parent. Ross, Ross, Stein and Trabasso (2006) asked 64 sibling dyads to reexamine an

ongoing conflict and attempt to resolve it through discussion. It was found that almost

two thirds of the dyads were able to resolve the conflict. This suggests that once children

were given time to calm down after the initial argument and were given the chance to

resolve the differences later, many did so. It appeared that older siblings took the lead in

proposing, promoting and gaining agreement to their plans for resolving the conflict

whereas the younger siblings' roles was to make suggestions or modifications to the plan.

Howe and Ross (1990) also found that first borns' references to second-borns' about

feelings and skills were positively linked with perspective taking and friendly sibling

relations across all settings. So, it appears that children do have the capacity to solve their

disputes without the help of a parent and the role of the eldest child is key in the problem

solving process. Conflict resolution within the sibling relationship and its link to other

relationships was examined and found that children's conflict with their friends at 6 years
of age was related to the conflict strategies of their siblings three years earlier (Dunn &

Herrera, 1997).

If siblings are capable of solving their own problems, without the intervention of

parents, then social skills training could play a very beneficial role in their relationship.

The strategies they learn through the training could last for future disputes, whereas the

intervention from a parent may only work when the parent is present. Some previous

studies have looked at how relationships can benefit from the teaching social skills to

better manage that conflict. Oden and Asher (1977) investigated whether social skills

training would benefit children in friendships. Third and fourth grade children were

coached in social skills and the results indicated that the coaching procedure was

effective in children peer acceptance. These children had even greater inclusion by peers

one year later. Mize and Ladd (1990) also focused on peer acceptance and social skills

training. Children were taught 4 skills: leading peers, asking questions to peers, making

comments to peers and supporting peers. The researchers found that increases in skills

with peers correlated with improvements in children's knowledge friendly social

strategies. The link between peer relations and sibling relations is apparent in other

studies. Past research found that social cognitive skills were related to successful

communication with both siblings and friends (Cutting & Dunn, 2006). Also, peer

relationships were found to be significant predictors of the quality of children's

interactions with younger siblings (Kramer & Gottman, 1992). Not only can social skills

training have a positive influence on a sibling relationship but it could also help in future

relationships with peers.

Social Skills Training and Sibling Relationships

The foundation of the present study was based upon past research that used social

skills training as a technique to improve sibling relationships. This study replicated a

previous experimental study by Kramer and Radey entitled 'Improving Sibling

Relationships Among Young Children: A Social Skills Training Model.' This study

looked at new approach to improving sibling relationships by using social skills training

model. The researchers hypothesized that children who received social skills training

would have more positive interactions with their siblings in comparison to children in the

control group. A videotape was used to record the interactions of the sibling before

experiment took place. During four sessions the experimental group was taught 6 social

skills: how to initiate play appropriately, how to accept play, how to refuse play,

perspective taking, how to deal with angry feelings, and how to manage conflict. A

model by McGinnis and Goldstein (1990) was use to teach these skills. Post measure

tests were used after the treatment, such as videotaping the sibling behavior and

questionnaires distributed to parents which assessed the sibling relationship. The Sibling

Relationship Questionnaire (Furman and Buhrmester, 1985) was administered to fathers

and mothers one week before and after the training sessions. The results indicated

suggested that the social skills training may be associated with the parents' reports of

increased warmth, decreased sibling rivalry, stable levels of competitive and agonistic

behavior, lower levels of problematic behaviors and lower status/power differential. This

research laid the framework for the present study except that this study will use the social

skill training for an intervention on one four year old child rather than a group.
 Chapter III

Sibling rivalry and the use of social skills training was the topic of interest and not

much past research has looked at the two together. The present study greatly replicates

that by Kramer and Radey (1997) but differs in that this is a case study. Throughout

chapter three the methodology of the current study will be discussed including the

participants, design, procedures, and analysis.

Participants

The participant in this study was a four year old female child. She was from a

white middle class family that consisted of a father, mother, two year old female sibling,

and six month old female sibling.

Design

The independent variable in this study was the sibling relationship, which was

measured using the Sibling Relationship Questionnaire (Furman and Buhrmester, 1985)

and consisted of variables such as rivalry, affection, companionship, intimacy,

competition and quarrelling. The dependent variable was the social skills training.

Procedure

The researcher met with the parent one week before the social skills training

sessions began and administered the SRQ to the mother. The child was then visited in the
home for four weekly 40-minute sessions on social skills training. During these four

sessions, 6 relevant social skills were taught. These consisted of (1) how to initiate play

appropriately, (2) how to accept play, (3) how to refuse invitations to play, (4)

perspective taking, (5) how to deal with angry feelings and (6) manage conflict. These

skills were taught following the model by McGinnis and Goldstein (1990). For example,

during the first session on initiating play the researcher explained how to appropriately

start play and then used dolls to model the behavior. The child was then asked to use the

dolls to model behavior. Different scenarios were used to demonstrate the skill and the

instructor provided feedback for the child. Each of the follow sessions progressed in the

same manner as this except teaching different skills. The mother was given a handout at

the end of each session explaining the purpose of that session and specific suggestion for

the mother to use on the child when performing that specific skill. At the end of the four

weeks the researcher administered the SRQ to the mother to see if the child's progress in

her interaction with her siblings.

Measures

The Sibling Rivalry Questionnaire (SRQ) from Furman and Buhrmester (1985)

was administered to the mother one week before and one week after the training sessions.

She rated her child's behavior on 48 items using a 5-point Likert scale that assessed the

how typical each behavior is of her child's interactions with the siblings (1 = hardly at all,

5 = extremely much). The responses on the SRQ are separated into four categories;

Warmth and Closeness, Rivalry, Conflict, and Relative Status/Power. Example items

from these scales include: "How much do both and this sibling do nice things for

each other?" (Warmth and Closeness), 'Who usually gets better by mother, or

19
this sibling?' (Rivalry), "How much do and this sibling disagree and quarrel with

each other?" (Conflict), and " How much does show this sibling how to do things

he or she doesn't know how to do?" (Relative Status/Power).

Analysis

The hypotheses for this study were the child that completed the social skills

training will have increased warmth, decreased sibling rivalry, stable levels of

competition, few problematic sibling behaviors and reduced status/power between

siblings. The researcher compared the results from the first SRQ to the last SRQ to see if

there were any improvements by running a correlation analysis and graphing the results.

Summary

Chapter 3 consisted of the participants, design, procedure, measures, and analysis

of this study. This is a case study of a four year old girl examining the use of social skills

training on her sibling relationship. The social skills lessons lasted four weeks (40 minute

sessions) and results were determined by the Sibling Relationship Questionnaire that was

distributed to the mother before and after the sessions.

 Chapter IV

Findings

The pre and post tests using the Sibling Rivalry Questionnaire were compared

using a correlation analysis. The hypotheses for this study were the child that completed

the social skills training will have increased warmth, decreased sibling rivalry, stable

levels of conflict, and reduced status/power between siblings.

The mean score for warmth was measured by using the means from the scale

scores of intimacy, prosocial behavior, companionship, similarity, admiration by sibling,

admiration of sibling, and affection. The pre test mean was 8.6 and the post test mean

was 10 (Figure 4.1). There was a slight increase in the amount of warmth after the social

skills training.

Figure 4.1 Warmth

10
9 ................ .Pre Test
7 mmE Post Test

Pre Test Post Test

The rivalry score consisted of the average scale scores of maternal and paternal

partiality. The pre test score was 7.5 and the post test score was 7 (Figure 4.2). There was

21
a minimal decrease in the amount of rivalry that existed between the siblings after the

social skills training.

Figure 4.2 Rivalry

7.6
7.4
7.2 Pre Test
. -. Post Test
6.8

6.6
Pre Test Post Test

The conflict score consisted of the average of the quarrelling, antagonism and

competition. The pre test score was 9.7 and the post test score was 9.7 (Figure 4.3). There

was no difference in the amount of conflict before and after the social skills training.

Figure 4.3 Conflict

5 .
Pre Test
5
Post Test

Pre Test Post Test

The relative/status power score consist of nurturance of sibling, dominance of

sibling, minus the scale scores of nurturance by sibling and dominance of sibling. The pre

test score was 12 and the post test score was 11 (Figure 4.4). There was a slight decrease

in the relative status/power after the social skills training.

22
Figure 4.4 Status/Power

11.5 Pre Test

11 UaPost Test

10.5
Pre Test Post Test

23
 Chapter V

Introduction

The purpose of the study was to use social skills training on an individual child to

enhance the relationship with her siblings. Past research on aiding the sibling relationship

has mainly focused on the child rearing practices of the parent or social skills training in

different areas, but less research has looked upon teaching the child new social skills. The

issues specifically addressed in this study were warmth between the siblings, rivalry,

conflict, and relative status/power. The results found that social skills training did not

have much impact on the child's relationship with her sibling. There was a slight increase

in the amount of warmth after the training, minimal decrease in the amount of rivalry, no

difference in the amount of conflict, and slight decrease in the relative status/power after

the training sessions.

Interpretation of Findings

The present study was not consistent with past research on social skills training

and sibling rivalry. Kramer and Radey (1997) found that by using social skills with the

children there was reports of increased warmth, decreased sibling rivalry, stable levels of

competitive and agonistic behavior, lower levels of problematic behaviors and lower

status/power differential. This present study found that the social skills training did not

produce the same positive effects on the sibling relationship. Other previous research on
social skills training found that children had the capacity to solve their disputes without

the help of a parent and the role of the eldest child is key in the problem solving process

(Howe & Ross, 1990). But this was also inconsistent with the findings in the present

study which found that teaching the oldest child social skills did not improve problem

solving between the siblings.

Limitations

There were some limitations to the present study. Using one child as a case study

hindered the process because a small sample size was not enough to generalize to the

population. Also having more participants, which different sibling relationships, would

have made the study more reliable. Another limitation was the small time span used for

the social skills training. The current study took place for four weeks with one 40 minute

training session each week. This may not have been enough time for the child to

completely absorb the social skills being taught. More time each week could have

reinforced the material taught to the child. The mother's lack of participation in the social

skills training also affected the study. If the mother was more willing to support the social

skills and reinforce the material being taught, even when the researcher was not present,

than the child may have started to behave differently.

Conclusions

Family relationships play an important role to an individual's life and one aspect

is the sibling interaction. Future relationships with peers and partners are often affected

by earlier sibling relationships. Because of this it was important to research how to

improve upon sibling relations at an early age. The present study gained background
knowledge from previous studies which explained that social skills training can have a

positive influence on siblings. Even though the present study did not yield the same

results it did have strengths. The strengths of this study consisted of valid measurements,

a cooperative participant, and planned training sessions based on previous research. The

weaknesses were a small sample size that did not allow for generalization, the time span

which was too short, and the mother's lack of commitment to the study. These findings

do not represent the entire population, but from the results it was suggested that social

skills training, by itself, does not produce positive sibling relationships. The relationship

between the participant and younger sibling did not change much from pre to post test so

future research must be done in order to find the most beneficial use of social skills

training when dealing with sibling rivalry.

Future Study

Future studies in this area could build upon the present study by having more

participants involved and create an experiment. This could create the opportunity to

generalize throughout the population. Also, studies should increase the amount of social

skills sessions taught to the child so that the child can have more time to practice these

skills. The role of the parent should also be used more often in future research. The

mother or father should be aware of the skills taught to their child and be consistently

reinforcing these skills. By making these changes to the present study, social skills

training may have the opportunity to create a more positive environment for siblings and

promote healthier family and peer relationships.

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