No matter how many times a parent may claim they don't have a favourite child, research has indicated preferential treatment does take place.

A meta‑analysis published in Psychological Bulletin - drawing on data from more than 19,000 people across 30 studies in the US, Canada and Western Europe between 2015 and 2022 found that daughters were preferred. 

Therapist Jo Robertson says this research can be interpreted in many ways.

"A lot of research shows that what we ask of our girls is different to what we ask of our sons. So I think it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy." 

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