Sibling relations of middle-aged individuals in metropolitan life

This study aims to gain an in-depth understanding of how middle-aged adults experience their relationships with their siblings throughout life and the meanings they attribute to these experiences, using a qualitative research design based on phenomenology. The participants in the study consisted of 14 individuals aged between 40 and 60, living in Istanbul and Ankara, with at least one sibling, and with different sociodemographic and life experiences. The data for the study were collected through semi-structured in-depth interviews between 28 February and 29 August 2024 and analysed using thematic analysis. Four main themes emerged from the study: (i) the construction of sibling identity: the interaction of individual, family, and society; (ii) emotional, relational, and everyday interactions; (iii) sibling relationships transformed by life events; and (iv) the future of the relationship: continuity or rupture? The findings reveal that, in middle adulthood, sibling relationships carry multidimensional, complex, and continuously reinterpreted meanings within individuals' life worlds. Emotional/relational and everyday interactions, life events, and the involvement of third parties may transform these relationships and render them open to renegotiation at certain turning points. Moreover, within the participant group, while some sibling relationships were maintained, others reflected selective closeness or distance, and some resulted in physical or emotional disengagement. The findings contribute to understanding adult sibling relationships from a phenomenological perspective within the scope of family sociology and draw attention to the diversity of sibling experiences and the essence of the sibling phenomenon.