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Copyright  © 2023 The  Author(s): This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the CC BY-NC 4.0 
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Determination of Relationship of Birth Order Position and Intelligent 

Quotient among Students of College of Medicine and Allied Health 

Sciences, Federal University Dutse 

Mikail Isyaku Umar1,2, Ni'imah Rabiu El-Yakub1, Ibrahim Ahmad Atiku1, Abba Ishaq1, Musa Abubakar3 and 
*Emmanuel Ifeanyi Obeagu4  

1 Department of Human Anatomy, Federal University Dutse, igawa State, Nigeria 

2 Department of Human Anatomy, Kampala International University Uganda. 

3 Department of Human Anatomy, Bayero University Kano, Kano State, Nigeria. 

4 Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Kampala International University, Uganda.  

Article Info: 
_______________________________________ 
Article History: 

Received 29 June 2023     
Reviewed  07 August 2023 
Accepted 24 August 2023 
Published 15 September 2023 

_______________________________________ 
Cite this article as:  

Umar MS, El-Yakub NR, Atiku IA, Ishaq A, 
Abubakar M, Obeagu EI, Determination of 
Relationship of Birth Order Position and 
Intelligent Quotient among Students of College 
of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences, Federal 
University Dutse, Asian Journal of Dental and 
Health Sciences. 2023; 3(3):33-36 

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.22270/ajdhs.v3i3.51        

_______________________________________

*Address for Correspondence:   

Emmanuel Ifeanyi Obeagu, Department of 
Medical Laboratory Science, Kampala 
International University, Uganda.  

Abstract 
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

The present study is aimed at finding the relationship of birth order position and intelligence quotient 
among students of College of Medicine and Allied health sciences in Federal University Dutse, Jigawa 
state. A total number of 250 students which comprise 124 males and 126 females were assessed using 
questionnaires. Data was analyzed using “SPSS statistics version 20”. The variable measurements were 
presented as mean ± SD. The differences between the two groups that is males and females were 
compared by using “independent sample t-test”. The correlation between the variables were found 
using Pearson’s and Partial correlation. Values of p < 0.05 were deemed as level of significant. The 
present study shows negative or no relationship between birth order position and intelligent quotient in 
the population study. Independent sample t-test for sexual dimorphism of the variables shows that no 
significant difference. 

Keywords: relationship, birth order position, intelligent quotient, students 

 

INTRODUCTION 

Intelligence has been defined in a variety of ways ranging from 
the ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills 1. 
Intelligence is a general mental capability that, among other 
things, involves the ability to reason, plan, solve problems, 
comprehend complex ideas, think abstractly, learn quickly and 
learn from experience 2. Intelligence is also defined as one’s 
capacity for logic, abstract thought, clear understanding, self-
awareness, communication, learning, memory, emotional 
knowledge, planning, creativity and ability to accurately solve 
problems 3. Intelligence is not merely book learning, a narrow 
academic skill, good grades, or test-taking smarts 4. Rather, it 
reflects a broader and deeper capability for understanding our 
surroundings; ‘catching on,’ ‘making sense,’ of things or 
figuring out what to do. Intelligence is the ability to think 
rationally, learn effectively, understand complex ideas, and 
adapt to the environment 5. 

Human intelligence is the intellectual capability of humans, 
which is marked by complex cognitive facts and high levels of 
motivation and self-awareness 6. Human intelligence, is a 
mental quality that consists of the abilities to learn from 
experience, adapt to new situations, understand and handle 
abstract concepts, and use knowledge to manipulate man’s 
environment 7. 

IQ (The intelligence quotient) is the quantification of an 
individual’s intelligence relative to peers of a similar age or a 
range of characteristics 8. IQ is one of the most heritable 
psychological traits, and an individual’s score on a modern IQ 
test is a good predictor of many life outcomes, including 
educational and career success, health, longevity, and even 
happiness 9. 

                       Open Access                                                                                                                                                                                                         Research Article                                          

http://dx.doi.org/10.22270/ajdhs.v3i3.51
https://crossmark.crossref.org/dialog/?doi=10.22270/ajdhs.v3i3.51&amp;domain=pdf
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4538-0161


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MATERIALS AND METHODS 

Study Area 

The study was conducted at Dutse local government area of 
Jigawa State. College of Medicine and Allied Health sciences, 
Federal University Dutse, Jigawa state was chosen as the study 
area. 

Study Population 

A total number of 250 students were selected comprising both 
genders students from all departments across the college. 

Sampling Method 

Random sampling method was adopted in this study that 
comprises 250 numbers of different birth ordinal positions. 

Out of the questionnaires distributed, all were retrieved and 
the information contained in each questionnaire was analyzed 
and presented in a table. The remaining questionnaires were 
returned either unfilled or uncompleted.  

The population size was determined using the formula; 

  
 

 
     

Where, 

n=Minimum Sample Size 

N=Total number of population 

e=coefficient error 

Ethical Approval 

An introductory letter of approval was obtained from 
Research and ethics committee of Human Anatomy 
Department, Federal University Dutse. The informed consents 
of the participated students were signed by the school 
managements on behalf of the students. 

Inclusion Criteria 

Subjects that are students from College of Medicine and Allied 
Health Sciences 

Exclusion Criteria 

Subjects that are not students from College of Medicine and 
Allied Health Sciences. 

Materials 

Birth order position assessment questionnaire 

Intelligence quotient test questionnaire 

Methodology 

Assessment of Birth order position 

The birth order position of the students was accessed by the 
use of birth order position assessment questionnaire. The 
participants of the study were personally enlightened before 
they were given the questionnaire. They were briefed 
regarding the nature and objectives of the study. 

 Intelligence Quotient Test 

The intelligence quotient test was accessed by using IQ test 
questions which involves making the subjects to respond to a 
set of questions on a questionnaire. The questionnaire consists 
of two parts: A and B part. A consist of space for bio data like 
sex, age, level etc. while B consists of space for birth order 
position, IQ score and set of Intelligence quotient test 
questions designed at the ultimate IQ test book. The questions 
were marked and recorded. 

Statistical Analysis 

Independent t-test was used the find the difference between 
the means. Partial and Pearson’s correlations were used to 
find the strength of the relationship between the variable. 
Level of significance was deemed acceptable at p<0.005. 

Statistical Package for Service Solution (SPSS) version 20.0 
was used for analysis. 

RESULTS 

Table 1 shows the descriptive statistics for level, no. of 
siblings, order of birth, and IQ score of both males and 
females. The minimum and maximum level of both subjects 
were 1 and 4 respectively, the minimum and maximum 
number of siblings were 0 and 17 respectively, also the 
minimum and maximum IQ score where 1 and 20 respectively. 
The minimum and maximum order of birth were 1 and 12 
respectively. The mean value of order of birth was 3±1.975. 
The average value of IQ score was 9.19±3.657.  

Table 2 shows the difference in IQ score of male and female 
subjects, the male subjects had a slightly higher mean score of 
9.23±3.92 than their female counterparts with mean score of 
9.14±3.393. Also, there was no significant statistical difference 
in the IQ score (p=0.844).  

Table 3a & b shows the relationship between the IQ and birth 
order for male and female subjects respectively. When level 
variable was controlled, there was no statistically significance 
correlation between IQ and birth order (p=0.009) and 
(p=0.046) respectively. Also, the tables show the relationship 
between IQ and level in both male and female subjects, there is 
no statistically significant correlation between the two 
variables (p=0.155) and (p=0.708) respectively. And also, 
there is no statistically significant relationship between level 
and order of birth (p=0.264) and (p=0.857) respectively. 

 

Table 1: Descriptive statistics of level, number of siblings, order of birth, and IQ score 

 Statistic 
Minimum 
Statistic 

Maximum 
Statistic 

Mean 
Statistic 

Std. Dev. 
Statistic 

Kurtosis 
Statistic 

Std. 
Error 

Level 250 1 4 2.34 1.151 -1.431 0.307 

No. of Siblings 249 0 17 5.66 2.756 0.869 0.307 

Order of Birth 250 1 12 3 1.975 3.339 0.307 

IQ Score 250 0 20 9.19 3.657 0.222 0.307 

Valid N (List wise) 249       



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Table 2: Difference in the IQ score of male and female subjects 

 Male Female   

 N Mean±SD N Mean±SD T P 

IQ SCORE 124 9.23±3.92 126 9.14±3.39 0.196 0.844 

ORDER OF BIRTH 124 2.86±1.95 126 3.14±1.99 -1.121 0.263 

IQ=Intelligence Quotient   N=Number of subjects SD=Standard deviation Correlation is significant at p<0.05 

 

Table 3a & b: Pearson’s correlation of the study variables 

Male  

    

Control Variables Correlations R P 

NO control IQ SCORE ORDER OF BIRTH -0.160 0.075 

 IQ SCORE LEVEL -0.129 0.155 

 ORDER OF BIRTH LEVEL 0.101 0.264 

 

LEVEL is controlled IQ SCORE ORDER OF BIRTH -0.149 0.099 

 

Female 

    

Control Variables Correlations R P 

NO control IQ SCORE ORDER OF BIRTH -0.041 0.650 

 IQ SCORE LEVEL 0.034 0.708 

 ORDER OF BIRTH LEVEL 0.016 0.857 

 

LEVEL is controlled IQ SCORE ORDER OF BIRTH -0.041 0.646 

IQ= Intelligence quotient Correlation is significant at 0.005 level of significance. 

 

DISCUSSION 

The current findings show that there was no significant 
relationship between IQ and birth order position. Contrary to 
the paper published by Belmont and Marolla in 1973, which 
says within each family size (i) firstborns always scored better 
on the Raven than did later borns; and (ii) with few 
inconsistencies, there was a gradient of declining scores with 
rising birth order, so that firstborns scored better than second 
borns, who in turn scored better than thirdborns, and so forth 
10. Research has shown that there is no significant relationship 
between the IQ and birth order position, and there is no 
difference between male and female subjects in terms of IQ 
and birth order position that can be detected. In the average 
score of the present study the male subjects have a slightly 
high average IQ score of 9.23±3.92 than their female 
counterparts with the average score of 9.14±3.39 but no 
statistically significance difference between IQ and birth order 
position of male and female subjects. 

It was observed from the study that birth order position has 
negative relationship with Intelligence quotient (IQ) with a 
significance p<0.001. The reason for this may be due to the 
issue of confounding variables, which if not properly taken 
into account, can produce biased estimates of the effects. 
Second is the issue of design choice, that is, whether a birth 
order study uses a between-versus a within-family design. 
Previous research and theory (e.g., Sulloway 11 suggests that 

the most important potential confounds in birth order 
research are sibship size, parental socio-economic status 
(SES), family structure, age, and gender. If not properly 
accounted for, these factors may lead to biased estimates of 
the links between birth order, personality and intelligence 12-

13.  

CONCLUSION 

There was no statistically significant relationship between 
birth order position and intelligent quotient (IQ). Sexual 
dimorphism was absent in the study population. 

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