The self-with-sibling representation and the Oedipal themes in the sibling relationship

Abstract

The first aim of this study was to explore self-representations associated with the experience of being with the sibling and the association of these representations with several aspects of the sibling relationship, such as jealousy, admiration, positiveness, etc. The second aim of the study was to search for Oedipal connotations in the sibling relationship. The sample consisted of 142 Boğaziçi University students, who had only one sibling with an age difference between 1 and 5. Hierarchical Classes Analysis (HICLAS) was used to gather the self-with-sibling representations, and the Sibling Relationship Scale (SRS) was designed for the purposes of this study and used to elicit data on different aspects of subjects' relationships with their siblings. The analysis of self-with-sibling representations revealed that the experience of being with a sibling is not unique but positive and shares many common features with the experience of being with a friend or being with the mother, in the ideal and/or usual state of self. This study failed to find any sign of the classical Oedipus Complex in the sibling relationship. These findings pointed out that the self-with-sibling representations of Turkish university students reflected the Turkish family structure and the self, which has developed in such structure. Lastly, the findings supported social and developmental perspectives on sibling relationship, whereas failed to support the classical Oedipus Complex as an explanation.