What Does “Differential Treatment” In Parenting Mean?

Parental differential treatment (PDT) refers to the degree to which parents treat each child in the family differently, often resulting in differences in parenting. This phenomenon can occur across various domains such as parental affection, parental conflict, privileges, or types of support. It is important for parents to be aware of why differences exist and how to prevent them from becoming a factor between siblings.

Siblings influence each other’s development from childhood to adolescence by modeling behaviors for one another. Adolescents who believe their parents treat them differently from their siblings have poorer psychosocial well-being than otherwise. A meta-analysis was used to investigate whether age differences, sex differences, and family size are linked to differences in parental treatment and their effects on relationships between siblings.

PDT can consist of differential affection (e.g., parents showing different amounts of love, warmth, and care to their children) and differential control (e.g., parents showing different amounts of controlling behavior such as disciplining, punishment, and blame to their children). Parents justify differential parental behaviors by identifying ways that they and their sibling differ from one another, such as in terms of their age, personal attributes, and other factors.

A body of work reveals that parental differential treatment is linked to adolescents’ adjustment, individual well-being, and sibling relationship quality in childhood, adolescence, and middle life. Parental differential treatment is the degree to which parents treat each child in the family differently, and most parents report that they are aware of why differences exist and are wary of comparisons.

In conclusion, understanding the reasons behind parental differential treatment and preventing it can help parents ensure that it does not become a factor between siblings.