The big idea: why it’s great to be an only child

The notion that it’s bad to be brought up without siblings should be banished for good

When I was growing up, only children were generally regarded as unfortunate souls; lonely, socially clumsy and often bullied. Partly, this was because they were unusual back then, and as those who’ve observed just about any species know, unusual individuals tend to be singled out by the pack. Today we live in a different world. From the late 1960s and 70s, the contraceptive pill, women’s increasing control over their lives and IVF meant that parents were better able to plan their families and often chose to make them smaller. The single child no longer stuck out so much.

But the stereotype has proved to be tenacious – so much so that many people still feel anxiety about the issue: parents over whether they have deprived their child of the experience of having siblings, only children that they may have missed out on a crucial part of their development.

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