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Family Size and Ordinal Position: Correlates of Academic Success

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 July 2008

Anne Poole  and
Annette Kuhn
Anne Poole
Affiliation:
Higher Education Research Unit, University of Sheffield
Annette Kuhn
Affiliation:
Higher Education Research Unit, University of Sheffield
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Extract

The National Survey of 1960 Graduates, which included every woman and every other man who graduated from British universities in 1960, provided a unique opportunity to further our knowledge of the correlates of academic success measured in terms of the gaining of a university degree. A relatively large family appeared to be no impediment to the educational achievements of middle-class children, but for those with less privileged home circumstances a small family was an essential ingredient for success. First-born children were over-represented among this sample, though only children were not particularly favoured. In general, the likelihood of graduation appeared to decrease with each later position in the birth order.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Biosocial Science , Volume 5 , Issue 1 , January 1973 , pp. 51 - 59
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1973

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