false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174259411m/373651.jpg 373651 3 In recent years, people have begun to examine family dynamics for clues to individual success. Birth order, in particular, has been a favored explanation for the differences between siblings in everything from leadership skills to romantic conquests. Now Dalton Conley, a sociology professor at NYU, reveals that indeed our siblings may affect how our lives turn out, but not in the ways we might think. Conley made an effort not to simplify the very complex familial data collected by both the United States Census, a long-term study conducted by the University of Michigan, and the University of Chicago's General Social Survey. What he found was that the differences between siblings outweigh almost every other kind of difference between any two individuals in the United States. Every family has a pecking order independent of birth order, and the differences between siblings are magnified by poverty and disenfranchisement. In these situations, families invest in the sibling most likely to succeed, leading to stark divides, even class differences between family members. Oddly, the choice of successful sibling is made independent of birth order, parental attention, or innate talents, and becomes a tacit agreement among family members. Conley uses a plethora of examples, including Bill and Roger Clinton, to illustrate his findings, and readers will nod knowingly at many of the ubiquitous family behaviors that set siblings up for differing life paths. Ultimately, what <I>The Pecking Order</I> reveals is that there is no single factor that can predict one's success or failure in life, but that complex, multilayered familial dynamics play the biggest part in determining our fate. <I>--Therese Littleton</I> 363559 2004 The Pecking Order: A Bold New Look at How Family and Society Determine Who We Become total:64|5:3|4:20|3:25|2:14|1:2| 64 200 116 12 3 0 false false Fri Nov 13 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 13 01:04:30 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 13 01:06:57 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Fri Feb 06 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 06 15:33:21 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 06 15:35:41 -0800 2009 2 0 false false Tue May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Aug 07 11:32:04 -0700 2007 Thu Aug 30 08:25:45 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005 Sun Feb 22 23:54:23 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 22 23:56:55 -0800 2009 2 0 false false Thu Aug 13 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Aug 13 06:00:37 -0700 2009 Thu Aug 13 06:01:09 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Mon Jun 02 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Oct 27 08:20:52 -0700 2007 Sat Jun 07 11:56:31 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue May 06 08:37:43 -0700 2008 Mon May 12 05:29:06 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri Mar 28 21:32:36 -0700 2008 Wed May 07 06:34:23 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu May 01 15:23:20 -0700 2008 Mon Jan 26 19:16:04 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Thu Jul 02 13:18:08 -0700 2009 Tue May 19 06:01:20 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 02 13:18:08 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Aug 07 11:27:40 -0700 2007 Tue Aug 07 11:28:25 -0700 2007 2 0 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Oct 02 09:44:15 -0700 2007 Tue Oct 02 09:45:19 -0700 2007 5 0 false false Mon Nov 16 20:32:47 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 16 20:32:47 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Fri Nov 13 00:07:33 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 13 00:07:33 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sun Oct 18 22:24:05 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 18 22:24:11 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sun Oct 11 04:26:54 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 11 04:26:54 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed Oct 07 17:38:26 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 07 17:38:29 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Oct 06 10:34:10 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 06 10:34:10 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Oct 06 09:05:54 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 06 09:05:54 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Thu Oct 01 22:50:00 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 01 22:50:00 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=373651