Preview

Peer Pressure

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1468 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Peer Pressure
Introduction
Peer pressure is a social influence exerted on an individual by others in order to get that person to act or believe in a similar way. It is used by a social group, often with the implication that "everybody's doing it." This influence can be negative or positive, with a successful result being a change in a person's behavior.
Nearly all children experience some form of peer pressure, whether at school, at church or at home among siblings. As a kind of social pressure, it dominates preteen life. Many teens become absorbed into different cliques and groups, spending less time with their families. Much of the personality of a teen can be shaped by a peer group.
Negative peer pressure can be a dangerous tool against children, especially younger or insecure children. They may be persuaded to take actions they might otherwise not have considered, such as smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol or taking drugs. Peer pressure is a problem for adults, who may be coerced, for example, into buying a house or car they can't afford in an effort to "keep up with the Joneses."
Peer pressure is not always negative, however. A student whose friends excel in academics may be compelled to study hard and get good grades. Influence can also be exerted to get a friend off drugs or to help an adult take up a good habit or drop a bad one. Study groups, class projects and athletic groups are examples of positive peer groups.
Why I chose the topic –
I decided to chose this topic because in the Indian Education System children experience a sudden thrust of freedom and responsibility to shape their future at the same time. In such cases, they can either be well-guided or mis-guided. Peer pressure may also lead to stress and anxiety.
Teens have a multitude of issues that can cause them anxiety. The two major settings for this peer pressure teen stress are in their home lives and in the college setting. The stressors are many and diverse. Their feelings can be affected by some

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Peer pressure can be completely harmless, but also terribly deadly. In his Confessions, St. Augustine talks about a number of such situations in which he found himself during his adolescence. These events took place because of his friends and the pressure they put on him. Over the centuries since Augustine’s era, much has changed in our world. Has peer pressure been changed or expelled from our world? No. This “natural phenomenon” among humans was in full use long before Augustine’s time, and unless all can truly stand secure in themselves, it will continue long after this day and age.…

    • 1238 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Development Worksheet

    • 821 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Peer pressure is all around us, and peer pressure is an issue we will have to deal with throughout…

    • 821 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Have you ever been pressured into doing something you did not want to do? This is peer pressure which is a strong social influence over peers that each member attempts to conform to the expectations of the group (dictionary.com). In peer pressure, there are usually consequences that could be destructive for the pressured individual (Kreske, 2008). It is very common for children to experience peer pressure during youth even in adulthood. There are some pressures that could be detrimental to their well being. I will argue that peer pressure is extremely detrimental that it can lead to putting their self and health at risk, put the person in severe situations that could make them feel as if they have to fit in and belonged or to be liked, and can lead to bad decisions which can result in life-changing consequences.…

    • 1843 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    2. Peer pressure is an influence and is harmful when one decides to use it in a negative way. For an example, doing harmful things to a person because another person said you should is a negative sign of peer pressure. The use of peer pressure is easily utilize on individuals with low self-esteem who may want…

    • 903 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dare Essay

    • 518 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Peer pressure is when friends, people, or yourself pressures you in to doing something. There are different types of peer pressure:…

    • 518 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    There are many problems regarding peer pressure. Cigarette smoking and drugs are overcrowding and taking over the once pure world. Our friends influence us greatly, and they are reason why we act or dress the way we do. Almost all teenage smokers and drug abusers began through the influence of a peer, and the fear of looking like a coward…

    • 304 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Many kids get peer pressure either because that’s the only choice they have , like in a party they don’t want to feel like a loser or a outcast or because they started hanging out with different people and they happened to do drugs . People are influenced by peers because they want to fit in, be like peers they admire, do what others are doing, or have what others have. Also influence by the way they dress and act, things they're involved in, and the attitudes they show.…

    • 1974 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Peer groups have their own behavioral standards which will be and has to be followed by the group, these are transmitted by peer pressure and lays down group ‘norms’ and nurtures loyalty to the group.…

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    “Tonight’s evening news carries a story about eight teenagers who attacked a male jogger in his twenties in a park a mile from my home. At a dinner party with friends I hear about their daughter’s grade nine graduation party where girls offered sex to the boys in exchange for 20$ bags of dope… Girls who attend the private school next to my office amble past my window, smoking. With their pleated tartan uniforms pulled up to look like mini skirts. A fast food outlet near my house has had to hire a security guard to make sure adolescents don’t loiter.” (Ungar 2007) We see a lot of this happening and we ourselves often experience this as well, sometimes in more ways that we realize. We hear the examples all the time, but which area seems to be more affected young teens or adults? The examples always seem more prevalent in the younger teens, skipping school, drugs, bullying and alcohol. But what exactly is peer pressure? According to http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-peer-pressure.htm “Peer pressure is a social influence exerted by others on an individual. The pressure is exerted in order to get someone to act or believe in a similar way. The peer pressure is acted out by a peer group against others, often be in an “everybody’s doing it” kind of way.” We all form different groups of friends as we get older and we usually try and do what it takes to fit in, after all we choose friends that are most compatible with us. The Gale Encyclopedia of Childhood and Adolescence states, ”Peers are the individuals with whom a child or…

    • 1239 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Peer pressure has a much greater effect on adolescent teens than any other factor. Think about it, teens spend more of their waking hours with peers than family members. The interaction is direct, and much more powerful than the influence of teachers and other authority figures. Peer pressure tends to have more of an effect on children with low self-esteem. If a child feels compelled to fit in, the teen may do things that go against his/her beliefs simply to be part of the group.…

    • 2128 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    obstacles to graduate

    • 540 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Peer pressure is a big part of teenagers’ lives. There are two types of peer pressure, minor and adult peer pressure. Minor peer pressure happens during a teenager’s high school years. These pressures are little; however, the students are still being protected by their parent. Once parents get in the situation, the student, most of the time, chooses the right thing to do. Adult peer pressure start at the age eighteen. This is the time when the student is leaving for college. Once in college, students do not have their parents breathing down their backs all of the time. This is when they have to make the right decisions on their own based on what their parents taught them. Making the right decision can be a challenge sometimes when everyone else is pushing you to do something wrong. By making the right decisions and avoiding peer pressure, all students would be able to succeed.…

    • 540 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    An Essay on Peer Pressure

    • 382 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Peer pressure is when a person is forced or under strong influence from their friends to do something be it good or bad. Peer pressure can have both positive and negative effects. Hence this essay will discuss about the positive and negative effect of peer pressure.…

    • 382 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    We've heard about it, experienced it, advised the children about it and yet, a majority of kids continue to struggle with it through years of schooling and perhaps even later. Peer pressure is inevitable since there always exists one 'cool group' at school - which basically includes a bunch of kids who do all the things that they are not supposed to do and make it seem like a 'cool' or 'happening' thing to do. Children, who are too sincere at studies, have often been at the receiving end of ridicule, and a lot of meaningless bashing by the bullies at school. Indulging in unsafe sexual practices, alcohol, drug abuse, eating disorders and smoking are some of the activities that are a part of the peer pressure phenomenon.…

    • 583 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    LITERATURE REVIEW

    • 685 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Dr.Brown (2012),an article written for the University of Michigan site, contained information on Peer Pressure. This article entailed some causes of Peer Pressure on adoloscents.It states that peers play a major role in a young person’s life and teenagers at this age wants to be liked ,to fit in as they are worried they will be made fun of if they do not go along with the group. “The idea that "everyone's doing it" may influence some kids to leave their better judgment, or their common sense, behind. “The study also describes two levels of Peer Pressure; one occurring in a large group while the second is in the close relationships with one or several best friends. The article correlates with my research objective (2) giving an insight to the causes of Peer Pressure on adolescents.…

    • 685 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    peer pressure

    • 392 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Peers become an important influence on behavior during adolescence, and peer pressure has been called a hallmark of adolescent experience.[1][2] Peer conformity in young people is most pronounced with respect to style, taste, appearance, ideology, and values.[3] Peer pressure is commonly associated with episodes of adolescent risk taking (such as delinquency, drug abuse, sexual behaviors,[4] and reckless driving) because these activities commonly occur in the company of peers.[2] Affiliation with friends who engage in risk behaviors has been shown to be a strong predictor of an adolescent's own behavior.[5] Peer pressure can also have positive effects when youth are pressured by their peers toward positive behavior, such as volunteering for charity [6] or excelling in academics.[7] The importance of peers declines upon entering adulthood.[8]…

    • 392 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays