Section 3

第三部分

Ruth: Ed, how are you getting on with the reading for our presentation next week?

Ruth: Ed，关于咱们下周演讲的阅读你做的怎么样啦？

Ed: Well, okay Ruth, but there's so much of it.

Ed：嗯，Ruth，但是实在太多了。

Ruth: I know. I hadn't realized birth order was such a popular area of research.

Ruth：我知道。我一直都没有意识到出生顺序竟然是这么热门的一个研究领域。

Ed: But the stuff on birth order and personality is mostly unreliable.

Ed：但是大多数关于出生顺序和性格的大多东西都是不可靠的。

From what I've been reading, a lot of the claims about how you position in the family determines certain personality traits are just stereotypes, with no robust evidence to support them.

从我阅读的内容来看，关于你在家中的排位决定了某种性格这样的很多论述其实都是刻板印象，并没有坚实的证据去支持。

Ruth: Okay, but that's an interesting point.

Ruth: 是的，但那是一个有趣的点。

We could start by outlining what previous research has shown.

我们可以先概括之前研究的结果。

There are studies going back over 100 years.

有些研究可追溯到100年前。

Ed: Yeah, so we could just run through some of the typical traits, like the consensus seems to be that oldest children are generally less well-adjusted because they never get over the arrival of a younger sibling.

Ed: 是的，我们可以仅提及一些典型的特点，比如大家的共识似乎是最年长的孩子一般都不那么善于自我调节，因为他们一直未能从年幼的兄弟姐妹出生到来这件事中平复过来。

Ruth: Right, but on a positive note, some studies claim that they were thought to be good at nurturing.

Ruth：是的，但是从积极方面看，一些研究主张年长的孩子擅长于养育幼儿。

Certainly in the past, when people had large families, they would have been expected to look after the younger ones.

当然在过去，当人们在大家庭中，他们总被期望去照顾年幼的兄弟姐妹。

Ed: There isn't such a clear picture for middle children, but one trait that a lot of the studies mention is that they are easier to get on with an older or younger siblings.

Ed: 对于出生顺序在中间排位的孩子还没有一个清晰的画像描述，但是有一个被很多研究所提及的特点是他们更容易与他们更年长或年幼的兄弟姐妹相处。

Ruth: Mm, generally eager to please and helpful, although that certainly not accurate as far as my family goes, my middle brother was a nightmare, always causing fights and envious of whatever I had.

Ruth: 嗯…一般来说他们会渴望去取悦别人，乐于助人，尽管在我们家可能并不是这样的，我那位排位在中间的兄弟就是一个噩梦，他经常引起打架以及总嫉妒我拥有的东西。

Ed: As I said, none of these seems to relate to my own experience.

Ed：就像我说的，这些好像都和我自己的经历没有什么关系。

I'm the youngest in my family and I don't recognize myself in any of the studies I've read about.

我是家里最年幼的，我没有在任何读过的研究中认识到自己。

I'm supposed to have been a sociable and confident child who made friends easily, but I was actually terribly shy.

我本该是一个能轻松交到朋友的那种合群并自信的孩子，但实际的我却十分害羞。

Ruth: Really? that's funny.

Ruth：是吗？这就有趣了。

There have been hundreds of studies on twins, but mostly about nurture versus nature.

有成百个关于双胞胎的研究，但大多都关于后天与先天的对比作用。

Ed: There was one on personality which said that a twin is likely to be quite shy in social situations, because they always have their twin around to depend on for support.

Ed: 有一个关于性格的研究中提到一个双胞胎孩子可能在社交场景下会非常害羞，因为他总会依赖另一个同胞兄弟姐妹在旁支持他。

Ruth: My cousins were like that. When they were small, they were only interested in each other and found it hard to engage with other kids.

Ruth: 我的堂（表）兄弟姐妹就像那样。当他们小的时候，他们只关注彼此，很难和其他小朋友玩在一起。

They're fine now though.

但是现在好了。

Ed: Only children have had a really bad press.

Ed: 独生的子女往往会得到负面评价。

A lot of studies of branded them as loners who think the world revolves around them because they've never had to fight for their parents' attention.

很多研究称这些孩子为“孤独者”，认为他们总觉得世界围着他们转，因为他们从来没有和别人去争夺过父母的关注。

Ruth: That does seem a bit harsh.

Ruth: 那听起来好像有一点苛刻了。

One category I hadn't considered before was children with much older siblings.

有一个我之前没有考虑的类型是有着年长得多的哥哥或姐姐的孩子。

A couple of studies mention that these children grow up more quickly and are expected to do basic things for themselves like getting dressed.

几个研究提到这些孩子成长更快，他们被期待去做一些自己力所能及的事情比如穿衣服。

Ed: I can see how that might be true, although I expect that sometimes the exact opposite, playing the baby role, from clamoring for special treatment.

Ed: 我觉得这很对，尽管我预期的是相反的情况，作为孩子，为了获得特殊待遇而去哭喊。

Ruth: What was the problem with most of these studies, do you think?

Ruth: 你认为大多数这些研究有什么问题？

Ed: I think it was because in a lot of cases, data was collected from only one sibling per family, who rated him or herself and his or her siblings at the same time.

Ed：我认为由于在大多数的情况中，数据都取自于同时评价自己和其家中唯一兄弟姐妹的人。

Ruth: Mm, some of the old research into the relationship between birth order and academic achievement has been proved to be accurate though.

Ruth: 嗯, 但一些关于出生顺序与学业成就关系的旧研究被证明是准确的。

Performances in intelligence tests declined slightly from the eldest child to his or her younger siblings.

在智商测试中的成绩会随着出生顺序的先后而稍微下降。

This has been proved in lots of recent studies.

这已经在很多最近的研究中被证明。

Ed: Yes, although what many of them didn't take into consideration was family size.

Ed: 对的，尽管很大一部分研究并没有考虑到家庭的大小。

The more siblings that are the likely of the family is to have a low socioeconomic status, which can also account for differences between siblings in academic performance.

拥有越多孩子的家庭往往有着低社会经济地位，这也会造成兄弟姐妹的学术表现不同。

Ruth: The oldest boy might be given more opportunities than his younger sisters, for example.

Ruth：比如，最年长的男孩可能会被给予更多的机会，与年幼一些的妹妹相比。

Ed: Exactly.

Ed：确实是这样。

Ruth: But the main reason for the marginally higher academic performance of oldest children is quite surprising, I think.

Ruth：但是年长的孩子获得更高学生表现的最主要原因是令人意外的，我认为。

It's not only that they benefit intellectually from extra attention at a young age, which is what I would have expected.

他们的智商并不像我认为的那样，受益于在年幼时获得了更多的关注。

It's that they benefit from being teachers for their younger siblings by verbalizing processes.

其实，他们更多受益于给他们的弟弟妹妹当老师，通过表达观点想法情绪的过程。

Ed: Right. And this gives them status and confidence, which again contributes in a small way to better performance.

Ed：是的。这些给了他们地位和信心，而这些又会在一定程度上促使他们表现得更好。

So would you say sibling rivalry has been a useful thing for you.

所以你会说手足相争对于你是有用的。

Ruth: I think so.

Ruth：我同意。

My younger brother was incredibly annoying and we fought a lot, but I think this has made me a stronger person.

我弟弟非常烦人，我们经常打架，但是我认为这让我成为了一个更坚强的人。

I know how to defend myself.

我知道如何去保护自己。

We had some terrible arguments and I would have died rather than apologize to him, but we had to put up with each other.

我们曾经有一些非常严重的争吵，我宁愿死掉也不想向他道歉，但是我们需要互相忍让。

And most of the time we coexisted amicably enough.

大多数时候，我们共同相处得足够和谐。

Ed: Yes, my situation was pretty similar, but I don't think having two older brothers made me any less selfish.

Ed：是的，我的情况也非常相似，但我不认为有两个哥哥使我不那么自私。

I was never prepared to let my brothers use any of my stuff.

我从不愿意让我的哥哥使用任何我的东西。

Ed: That's perfectly normal, whereas some time... (fade out)

Ed: 那太正常了，但是有时……（淡出）