Your siblings\u2014You\u2019ve shared your toys with them, numerous meals, the blame for a select number of household accidents, secrets and jokes. Maybe you\u2019ve even had to share a room or a car at some point. But when it comes to dating, do you share the same views?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In honor of National Siblings Day, we asked the daters at the online dating site Zoosk to spill the beans on what, if any, influence their siblings have had over who they date. The answer? Like most things between brothers and sisters, it\u2019s complicated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. Siblings Come First <\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sorry parents, but when it comes to dating, you\u2019re the last to know. 54% of daters reported that when they\u2019re seriously interested in someone, their brothers and sisters are the first people in their family who know about it. On top of that, 52% said their siblings are the first people to meet the person they\u2019re dating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re both the same gender and closer in age,\u201d one dater explained about why he talked to his brother about who he was dating. \u201cI want my parent\u2019s respect, but they may not view our generation\u2019s dating priorities like my brother and I do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2. Blood Is Only Slightly Thicker Than Water<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite the fact that our siblings are the first people we go to talk about who we\u2019re dating, we don\u2019t always listen to what they have to say. (For many of us, this won\u2019t come as much of a surprise.) When asked if they\u2019d date someone who didn\u2019t get along well with their siblings 41% said yes, 34% said maybe but not likely, and only 24% said no.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI value my family\u2019s opinions,\u201d said one dater, \u201cbut ultimately who I date is up to me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, many did feel that their siblings\u2019 opinions were one of many things they took into consideration when evaluating a relationship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy siblings are among the people in my life who have known me the longest,\u201d explained another man. \u201cI highly value their opinion and dating someone is integrating someone new into your life. If the people closest to you don\u2019t think highly of that person, then I think that requires a reevaluation of your choice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. In the End, Family Matters
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\n<\/b>When asked whose opinion mattered most when it came to their significant other, daters reported that siblings and parents had about the same influence. 30% said that both their parents and siblings opinions mattered, 15% said that they valued their siblings\u2019 opinions more, and 16% said that parents were the most important. That only left 39% who didn\u2019t think family opinions mattered at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe person I\u2019m dating may potentially become family,\u201d explained one woman. \u201cThey need to like my family and my family needs to like them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our relationships with our siblings are important. For many of us, they\u2019re the closest relationships we have that will last the longest. This National Siblings Day, feel free to give and take dating advice from your siblings, but feel free to give them a hard time and push back too. Afterall, fighting, teasing, and the occasional argument is part of the fun too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy sibling relationships are probably not something that can be expressed in words,\u201d one dater put best. \u201cThere were fights, arguments, and a lot of hitting each other. But at the end of the day there was so much love. We\u2019ll stay together forever.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Is blood thicker than water? For National Siblings Day we surveyed daters to find out. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":12536,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[903,981],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12535","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dating-statistics","category-dating-data"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n