Family dynamics often create roles that children never consciously choose but still end up carrying. Two of the most common roles are the scapegoat sibling and the protected sibling. The scapegoat ...

Did you ever feel left out, picked over, excluded, or castigated by a member of your own family or by someone close to you? Were you treated more like a stage prop growing up and pushed out like a ...

On the surface, a family scapegoat often looks as if they're the problem child. They might be the college dropout in a legacy of Ivy Leaguers or the introverted gamer in a family of outgoing athletes.

The Scapegoat, by William Holman Hunt. Source: Wikicommons The ego defense of displacement plays an important role in scapegoating, in which uncomfortable feelings such as anger, frustration, envy, ...