Peter Andre and his wife Emily are expecting their third child together, and the happy couple, who both come from large families, have both spoken of their desire to extend their brood further.
Now a psychologist has explained to HELLO! why it is that parents like the Andres seem to replicate the family size they experienced in their own upbringing, and it’s called the "family script".
GP mum-of-two Emily, 34, shares son Theo, seven, and daughter Amelia, nine, with husband Peter, and is also step-mum to his daughter Princess, 16, and son Junior, 18, from his marriage to Katie Price.
Peter previously told New! Magazine in 2020: "I've been umming and ahhing about having another child, but then Emily has thrown this bombshell at me about having two more!”
He added: "I'd be up for having twins, but she's definitely not on board with that,” and went on to speak of his own large family: "I’m one of six, my dad is one of 12. And his dad got his mum pregnant 17 times, so he was really one of 17. But these days five kids is quite a lot."
And in 2017, Emily told OK! Magazine, “never say never when it comes to having more children,” adding, "I'm from a big family with four brothers and it's lovely."
Psychologist Dr Claire Vowell, founder of The Corporate Psychologist, told HELLO! why we often want to copy our own family environment.
"Our own early experiences leads to the formation of ‘internal working models’ of what it means to be a parent,” explains Claire. “These working models are also known as ‘family scripts’.
“Family scripts are the means through which families pass down traditions, behaviours and expectations. They provide a shared understanding of what family life should look like. Basically, from when we’re born, we absorb our parents’ ideas about the world.
“These deeply ingrained family scripts play a significant role in our own approach to parenting."
Claire added: “In effect, our childhood experiences shape a set of expectations and preferences that guide our choices, which can even include determining the size of our own families. This goes some way to explain why people with a number of siblings seek to have a large family."
So, there you have it. We wonder how many children the Andres will have!