Everybody needs a sister– at least if the results of a new study from the University of Ulster in Ireland hold true. Researchers at the school recently asked 571 people ages 17 to 25 about their lives and discovered that the ones who grew up with sisters tend to be happier and more balanced, according to the BBC . People with brothers, on the other hand, had more ‘distress.’
‘Sisters appear to encourage more open communication and cohesion in families,’ said professor and head researcher Tony Cassidy. ‘However, brothers seemed to have the alternative effect.’
Whereas boys ‘tend to internalize problems and in families where there are lots of sons, I can see that can cause problems,’ Cassidy added, ‘sisters appear to encourage more open communication and cohesion in families.’
Not everyone is buying it, though. One reader told BBC, ‘I have a sister and am neither happy nor balanced.’
I concur– depends on the sister.
What do you think? –Jax
Photo by adwriter, via Flickr.
