Social Perceptions of Siblings’ Sexual Composition: Evidence from Portuguese Youth

Abstract

This paper explores sibling relationships among Portuguese youth, focusing on the importance of gender and sibling sexual composition in three specific analytical domains: (a) the social meanings and perceptions of sibling relationships and their impact on daily life practices; (b) parents’ differential treatment of sons and daughters and its implication for the well-being of brothers and sisters within the sibling group, and; (c) the gender determinants of care-giving for elderly parents. The study is based on focus groups and semi-structured interviews involving 47 Portuguese men and women, with an average age of 24 years. The results show that gender relations and the sexual composition of siblings have a significant impact on sibling relationships. Same-sex siblings are perceived as having more harmonious and cooperative relationships than mixed-sex siblings, regardless of age and birth order. Parents’ differential treatment of sons and daughters, whether it reproduces or deconstructs traditional gender roles, influences the well-being of youths and affects the way brothers and sisters envisage how care-giving tasks for elderly parents will be shared. Most youths envisage an egalitarian distribution of care-giving, although sisters are still regarded as the main care providers.