The birth order news that will ruin everything you've ever read before.

I bet every time you see a new birth order study, you click so fast you nearly break your finger.

I know this, because it’s what I do.

It is my desperate quest to prove why being a middle child sucked/still sucks.

It is my desperate attempt to have scientific evidence why my siblings behave the way they do (eldest and youngest are so annoying).

Plus, seeing as though I am about to start a little family of my own, I’d like to know what to expect from each kid. As much advance warning as I can get, you know.

Read more: The results are in. And the perfect age gap between siblings is…

But now, I’ve come across a terrible terrible study.

Birth order is BS.

A recent study by the team at University of Illinois surveyed 377,000 high school students.

They found that the eldest isn't smarter than their siblings (I knew it).

Read more: Good news first borns! Massive apology to everyone else.

They found that the youngest isn't more carefree and reckless than their siblings (what?).

What they found was that the difference in personality or intelligence between siblings was so slight, that it barely mattered.

So, the eldest sibling did rank more intelligent and more extrovert, but only by 0.02, which in maths/science speak is pretty much zero.

Read more: What your birth order really says about you.

“[I]n terms of personality traits and how you rate them, a 0.02 correlation doesn’t get you anything of note,” says psychology professor Brent Roberts. “You’re not going to be able to sit two people down next to each other and see the differences between them. It’s not noticeable by anybody.”

Here are some famous middle children who... didn't get much mention in the results of the study. Typical. TAP on the image below to scroll through the gallery. Post continues after the gallery. 

The study suggested that all the difference that we see (and has been studied) are just that. Things we perceive. So as a parent, you are more likely to think of your eldest as mature, while your youngest is carefree, but that's because of their age. An eight-year-old, for example, will always be a more mature and world-wise than a two-year-old.

The study also mentioned that family expectations and social norms play a role in how siblings develop.

Read more: The Achiever, the Peacemaker & the Life of the Party: Why birth order matters.

So basically... if your siblings are annoying... blame your parents.

Do you think birth order is real?