Study

Brotherly Love? Sibling Bullying Is Underestimated by: Jennifer Gibson, PharmD

The day my second son was born, a nurse — who had raised two boys of her own — offered advice: “When they get upset with each other, let them fight it out. They won’t kill each other.” She also added: “Just make sure they fight outside, so they don’t get blood on your carpet.” Fights between siblings, even physically violent ones, are expected –- and accepted –- in society, but is this attitude appropriate and healthy? A new study reports that sibling bullying is under-recognized, and it can have serious adverse consequences for mental health and overall well-being.

Researchers from the University of New Hampshire interviewed nearly 3600 adolescents aged 10 to 17 years and caregivers of children aged 9 and under. The interviews were conducted as part of the National Survey of Children’s Exposure to Violence, and the study, published online by the journal Pediatrics, is one of the first to use a nationally representative sample to address the occurrence and consequences of sibling bullying.

Each child in the study had at least one sibling under age 18 living at home. Participants were asked if the adolescent or child had been bullied –- defined as physical assault, property victimization, or psychological aggression –- by a sibling in the past year. They were also asked if the adolescent or child experienced anger, depression, or anxiety in the previous month.

In all, 8% of the adolescents and children experienced at least two types of bullying. Children who were even mildly physically assaulted had higher levels of mental distress than adolescents who were assaulted. Outcomes did not differ between groups for other types of bullying. Any type of sibling aggression predicted worse mental health.

Despite society-wide efforts to stop bullying at school and online, very little attention is paid to sibling relationships. A small survey of 27 sibling pairs reported that 78% of...