’Twins are multiple treasures’ - workshop conference and book presentation
At our workshop conference entitled ’Twins are multiple treasures’, the KINCS Twin Studies in Social Science study volume was presented, which explores the stereotypes related to twins and the social expectations directed towards them.
Tünde Fűrész, president of the Mária Kopp Institute (KINCS), pointed out that although twins have been researched for more than a century, there are still many unanswered questions, which is why the recently published volume fills a gap in twin research in many ways. The special feature of the volume is that it was written by representatives of different generations of researchers from different scientific fields, and several institutes and research workshops also participated in its compilation.
Prof. Dr. Bagdy Emőke, clinical psychologist and mother of twins, spoke in her opening speech about how being a twin is a special thing, which can be both a blessing and a curse depending on how society treats it. The professor of Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church considered the question of socialization and attachment to be particularly interesting, which in the case of twins begins already in the womb, and showed with personal examples the special relationship and connection that can be felt between twin brothers and sisters.
Dr. Zsófia Drjenovszky, associate professor at Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church, one of the editors of the volume, presented the studies published in the book, in which they discussed twin conflicts, competition between twin pairs, the socialization process of twins, their fertility patterns, their attitude towards their health, stereotypes related to twins, as well as the attitude of twin parents towards their children.
Dr. András Pári, head of research at KINCS, presented the demographic data related to twins. According to his information, the number of twin births has increased significantly, according to estimates, 3.7-3.9 million twins are born every year. The assistant lecturer of Pázmány Péter Catholic University highlighted that since 1998, the number of twin births has increased sharply in Hungary as well. While it was 1.5-2 percent in the 1980s, it is currently 2.8-3 percent. According to the head of research at KINCS, this is mainly due to the later age of mothers at birth, artificial insemination procedures, genetic predisposition, and the number of previous pregnancies. Women between the ages of 35 and 39 have the greatest chance of giving birth to twins.
At the round table discussion entitled ’Twin researchers in the family’, Dr. Ádám Tárnoki, radiologist, twin researcher, associate professor at Semmelweis University, Dr. Zsófia Drjenovszky, associate professor at Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church, and Dr. Rita Hegedűs, associate professor of Selye János University and Corvinus University of Budapest shared their thoughts. The moderator of the round table discussion was Dr. András Pári, the head of research at KINCS. The experts explained why twin research is important in various scientific fields. They also talked about the milestones of their research fields, as well as topics related to twins that are worth researching in the future. Regarding the latter, the observation of adult twin pairs, studies related to aging, and epigenetic studies were highlighted.
At the round table discussion entitled ’Social researchers raising twins’, Dr. Rita Hegedűs, associate professor of Selye János University and Corvinus University of Budapest moderated Prof. Dr. Gabriella Pusztai, university professor of the University of Debrecen, Dr. Székely Levente, director of the Youth Research Institute of Mathias Corvinus Collegium and Dr. Márton Medgyesi, the leading researcher of TÁRKI Zrt., participated. During the conversation they talked about stereotypes about twins, sibling rivalry, the question of dominance in their relationship, comparing twins and the challenges that twin parents face.
The volume is available in Hungarian and English in the KINCS e-bookstore. http://ekonyv.koppmariaintezet.hu/
