There is great evidence that younger children learn a lot from their older siblings.  Siblings can be major influences in each other's lives.  Essman (as cited in Cicirelli, 1995) described how sibling relationships can be viewed as socializing the sibling pair for adult roles.  As siblings play and model each other they are practicing roles they will use later in life.  Younger siblings watch older siblings as they go through early childhood, the school setting, and the many other stages of development of life.   Even as infants and toddlers they watch and learn from older siblings.  Dunn (as cited in Cole, 1996) study showed although parents are of primary importance in children's socialization, siblings also play significant roles in it.