Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsDefinitionTypesIs It Always Bad?BenefitsRisksOvercoming Peer Pressure
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Definition
Types
Is It Always Bad?
Benefits
Risks
Overcoming Peer Pressure
This article will explain what peer pressure looks like in young adults and teens and how it can affect adults.
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What Is Peer Pressure?
Peer pressure often occurs when one or more members of your social group pressure you to behave or act in particular ways. It is often associated with negative or harmful activities like substance use, reckless driving, and more.
Peer Pressure in Children
Peer pressure doesn’t suddenly appear at a certain age. Peer pressure transcends age groups and can begin before the first day of school at daycare, playgroup, and more.
Peer pressure in younger children tends to be limited to copying bad behaviors such as acting out or taking things that don’t belong to them.
Signs of Peer PressureA child who is experiencing peer pressure may:Seem to have sudden changes in long-held beliefs and valuesHave noticeable changes in attitude and behaviorStart dressing differentlySeem disconnected from familySeem dissatisfied with themselves and their social life
Signs of Peer Pressure
A child who is experiencing peer pressure may:Seem to have sudden changes in long-held beliefs and valuesHave noticeable changes in attitude and behaviorStart dressing differentlySeem disconnected from familySeem dissatisfied with themselves and their social life
A child who is experiencing peer pressure may:
Peer Pressure in Older Teens and Young Adults
Older teens and young adults may be peer pressured to engage in harmful activities like drinking alcohol, smoking, or reckless driving. At this age, peer pressure has the potential to affect a child’s long-term health and well-being and put them into dangerous situations.
Gender can affect how these pressures are internalized and expressed. For example, of the 29% of teens who responded they felt peer pressure to look “good,” girls were more likely than boys to say they feel a lot of pressure to look good (35% vs. 23%).
Peer Pressure in Adults
Adults are not exempt from facing societal expectations and peer judgment or influence. For example, you may carry the pressure of academic achievement into your career. You may also face challenges like wanting to “keep up with the Jones’” and feel pressure to purchase items you cannot afford to maintain an image that fits into your work, social, or neighborhood environment.
Types of Peer Pressure
Is Peer Pressure Always Negative?
Peer pressure is not always negative.Trying to fit into a healthy social group, for example, of peers getting good grades, joining sports teams, and making plans for their futures, is positive. Some refer to this type of peer “pressure” as peer “influence.”
According to Brett Laursen, Ph.D., a fellow of the American Psychological Association whose work focuses on the outcome of children’s interactions with peers and parents, peer influence can occur anytime one peer is more “influential” than the other.
Benefits of Peer Pressure
Peer influence can show you there is support, encouragement, and community available to you.By seeing someone else do something positive, even if it’s challenging, you may reflect on your own life choices, goals, and where you spend your time.
Examples of positive peer influence include:
The 10 Biggest Teen Health Risks
Risks of Peer Pressure
The risks associated with peer pressure may not be immediately obvious or seem like cautionary tales, but they are serious and can have life-altering consequences.
Why Young People Are More SusceptibleYoung people may be more susceptible to peer pressure because their identities are still forming; they desire to fit in and not be bullied and have less risk aversion than adults.In addition, a combination of other age-related and developmental factors contribute to youth’s increased susceptibility to peer pressure:They may have trouble regulating their emotions.They may be more vulnerable to the effects of reward.They favor immediate over delayed prospects.
Why Young People Are More Susceptible
Young people may be more susceptible to peer pressure because their identities are still forming; they desire to fit in and not be bullied and have less risk aversion than adults.In addition, a combination of other age-related and developmental factors contribute to youth’s increased susceptibility to peer pressure:They may have trouble regulating their emotions.They may be more vulnerable to the effects of reward.They favor immediate over delayed prospects.
Young people may be more susceptible to peer pressure because their identities are still forming; they desire to fit in and not be bullied and have less risk aversion than adults.
In addition, a combination of other age-related and developmental factors contribute to youth’s increased susceptibility to peer pressure:
Substance Abuse
Peer pressure to use substances like alcohol and cannabis can unfold intoproblems with substance abuse.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “youth with substance use disorders also experience higher rates of physical and mental illnesses, diminished overall health and well-being, and potential progression to addiction.”
In Sexual Situations
Peer pressure can lead a person to engage in sexual activity before they are ready. It may also influence the person to participate in unsafe, risky, or dangerous sexual activities.The consequences may include being exposed to asexually transmitted infection(STI), developing pregnancy, or having images of yourself posted online without consent.
Mental Health
Causes and Risk Factors of Anxiety
Rising above peer pressure means not giving in to the pull of others to act in a certain way. No matter your age, you can practice not giving in to negative peer pressure and work on surrounding yourself with more positive influences.
Some ways of coping with peer pressure include:
Stress Therapy Treatment
Summary
Peer pressure is about the influence of others. It can be implicit or explicit, positive or negative. When the pressure is positive, encouraging you to become a better version of yourself, it may be referred to as peer “influence.”
While peer influence can improve your life, peer pressure can cause problems. For example, you may feel pressure to do unsafe things that have risks you may not fully know. Resisting peer pressure can involve avoiding it, saying no, and surrounding yourself with more positive influences.
9 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.Peer pressure.American Academy of Family Physicians.Helping your child deal with peer pressure.Pew Research.Most U.S. teens see anxiety and depression as a major problem among their peers.American Psychological Association.Speaking of psychology: the good and bad of peer pressure.Meehan ZM, Hubbard JA, Moore CC, Mlawer F.Susceptibility to peer influence in adolescents: Associations between psychophysiology and behavior.Dev Psychopathol. 2022:1-13. doi:10.1017/S0954579422000967National Institute on Drug Abuse for Teens.Why does peer pressure influence teens to try drugs?U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.High-risk substance use among youth.Widman L, Choukas-Bradley S, Helms SW, Prinstein MJ.Adolescent susceptibility to peer influence in sexual situations.J Adolesc Health. 2016;58(3):323-329. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2015.10.253American Psychological Association.How to help children and teens manage their stress.
9 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.Peer pressure.American Academy of Family Physicians.Helping your child deal with peer pressure.Pew Research.Most U.S. teens see anxiety and depression as a major problem among their peers.American Psychological Association.Speaking of psychology: the good and bad of peer pressure.Meehan ZM, Hubbard JA, Moore CC, Mlawer F.Susceptibility to peer influence in adolescents: Associations between psychophysiology and behavior.Dev Psychopathol. 2022:1-13. doi:10.1017/S0954579422000967National Institute on Drug Abuse for Teens.Why does peer pressure influence teens to try drugs?U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.High-risk substance use among youth.Widman L, Choukas-Bradley S, Helms SW, Prinstein MJ.Adolescent susceptibility to peer influence in sexual situations.J Adolesc Health. 2016;58(3):323-329. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2015.10.253American Psychological Association.How to help children and teens manage their stress.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.Peer pressure.American Academy of Family Physicians.Helping your child deal with peer pressure.Pew Research.Most U.S. teens see anxiety and depression as a major problem among their peers.American Psychological Association.Speaking of psychology: the good and bad of peer pressure.Meehan ZM, Hubbard JA, Moore CC, Mlawer F.Susceptibility to peer influence in adolescents: Associations between psychophysiology and behavior.Dev Psychopathol. 2022:1-13. doi:10.1017/S0954579422000967National Institute on Drug Abuse for Teens.Why does peer pressure influence teens to try drugs?U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.High-risk substance use among youth.Widman L, Choukas-Bradley S, Helms SW, Prinstein MJ.Adolescent susceptibility to peer influence in sexual situations.J Adolesc Health. 2016;58(3):323-329. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2015.10.253American Psychological Association.How to help children and teens manage their stress.
American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.Peer pressure.
American Academy of Family Physicians.Helping your child deal with peer pressure.
Pew Research.Most U.S. teens see anxiety and depression as a major problem among their peers.
American Psychological Association.Speaking of psychology: the good and bad of peer pressure.
Meehan ZM, Hubbard JA, Moore CC, Mlawer F.Susceptibility to peer influence in adolescents: Associations between psychophysiology and behavior.Dev Psychopathol. 2022:1-13. doi:10.1017/S0954579422000967
National Institute on Drug Abuse for Teens.Why does peer pressure influence teens to try drugs?
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.High-risk substance use among youth.
Widman L, Choukas-Bradley S, Helms SW, Prinstein MJ.Adolescent susceptibility to peer influence in sexual situations.J Adolesc Health. 2016;58(3):323-329. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2015.10.253
American Psychological Association.How to help children and teens manage their stress.
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