Ethics of a war on terror
Sociology
Professor Hogue
18 September 2012
Peer Pressure and College Students College life is full of highs and lows, happiness and sadness, but on a more fundamental level college is about making the choices between right and wrong by yourself for the first time in your life. There are no parents there to say that something is a mistake and not to do it, you don’t get infinite chances to make the right decision; You have to decides for yourself what you think is right. In the case of many college students who have difficulties making their own choices they submit to the choices that others in their peer group have made instead. This social phenomenon is called peer pressure. Peer pressure is the social influence of a peer group exerts on its individual members in order to make them change as a result of social norms. This conformity to the group is an issue I have often struggled with and it led me to wondering, why peer pressure is so effective in influencing college students? In college people who aren’t accustomed to being by themselves for extended periods of time in a new situation, people who struggle being by themselves all look for a leader or person that they can look to for guidance. When you become a follower you strive to please others so that they like you instead of trying to make them like you for who you really are. I use to think I needed to prove that I belonged socially by following everyone and it was easy just do what others do. Peer pressure is an easy solution to decision making and relieves the pressures of making tough choices and can leads to poor life choices in many situations however peer pressure can be a good thing and often times helps people. Peer pressure is a very individualistic thing even though it happens on a large scale. Everyone is affected by peer pressure differently and has different reasons for allowing peer pressure to influence their decision making. By interviewing 5 different people I was able to delve into
Professor Hogue
18 September 2012
Peer Pressure and College Students College life is full of highs and lows, happiness and sadness, but on a more fundamental level college is about making the choices between right and wrong by yourself for the first time in your life. There are no parents there to say that something is a mistake and not to do it, you don’t get infinite chances to make the right decision; You have to decides for yourself what you think is right. In the case of many college students who have difficulties making their own choices they submit to the choices that others in their peer group have made instead. This social phenomenon is called peer pressure. Peer pressure is the social influence of a peer group exerts on its individual members in order to make them change as a result of social norms. This conformity to the group is an issue I have often struggled with and it led me to wondering, why peer pressure is so effective in influencing college students? In college people who aren’t accustomed to being by themselves for extended periods of time in a new situation, people who struggle being by themselves all look for a leader or person that they can look to for guidance. When you become a follower you strive to please others so that they like you instead of trying to make them like you for who you really are. I use to think I needed to prove that I belonged socially by following everyone and it was easy just do what others do. Peer pressure is an easy solution to decision making and relieves the pressures of making tough choices and can leads to poor life choices in many situations however peer pressure can be a good thing and often times helps people. Peer pressure is a very individualistic thing even though it happens on a large scale. Everyone is affected by peer pressure differently and has different reasons for allowing peer pressure to influence their decision making. By interviewing 5 different people I was able to delve into