Sister

A sister is the female offspring of one's parent.

Overview

Two child sisters

Three sisters

The term sister comes from Old Norse systir which itself derives from Proto-Germanic *swestēr, both of whom have the same meaning, i.e. sister. Some studies have found that sisters display more traits indicating jealousy around their siblings than their male counterparts, brothers.^[1] In some cultures, sisters are afforded a role of being under the protection by male siblings, especially older brothers from issues ranging from bullies or sexual advances by womanizers.^[2]

Studies

Various studies have shown that an older sister is likely to give a varied gender role to their younger siblings as well as being more likely to develop a close bond with their younger siblings.^[3] Older sisters are more likely to play with their younger siblings.^[4] Younger siblings display a more needy behavior when in close proximity to their older sister^[5] and are more likely to be tolerant of an older sisters bad behavior.^[6] Boys with only an older sister are more likely to display stereotypically male behavior, and such masculine boys increased their masculine behavior with the more sisters they have.^[7] The reverse is true for young boys with several sisters, as they tend to be feminine, however they outgrow this by the time they approach pubescence.^[8] Boys with older sisters were less likely to be delinquent or have Emotional and behavioral disorders.^[9] A younger sister is less likely to be scolded by older siblings than a younger brother.^[10] The most common recreational activity between older brother/younger sister pairs was art drawing.^[3] Some studies also found a correlation between having an older sister and constructive discussions about safe sexual practises.^[11]

Fictional works about sisters

• Hanging Up
• Hannah and Her Sisters
• Hope & Faith
• In Her Shoes
• Sisters (TV series)
• What I Like About You

References

External links

• The dictionary definition of sister at Wiktionary