Peer pressure is the influence that one feels from a group of people or from a person to do something which you wouldn’t have considered doing on your own. When one is new or less experienced around the people around you, one feels the need to belong to such a group. No one wants to feel left out and this is the reason why one goes with what other people do and think so that they can fit in that group (Magill, 2011). Peers can be a friend, classmates or a television icon that one admires. Peer pressure can be from the community or from the school. It affects one in a number of ways; this can either be directly or indirectly. Peer pressure can have either positive or negative effects.
Positive Effects
Contrary to what people think that peer pressure only has negative effects, there are also positive effects: when one is among a group of ambitious people he or she may want to be the same so that they do not feel left out from the group. The team works, sports and extra curriculum activities are also some of the positive effects of peer pressure. Peer pressure can also have a positive impact through sharing experiences and helping teens in understanding how people live in the community. Peers can also help one in making good decisions through listening to one's opinion and telling them what they think. An Individual can also become a good role model and therefore promote good habits in that group.
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Negative Effects
While there may be many positive effects of peer pressure there are also negative effects of peer pressure. Statistics show that nearly 7.2 billion die from peer related activities (Tarshis, 2010). These activities include violent crimes, accidents, unwanted pregnancies and even suicidal practices. Some of the teenagers may not be able to stand by their own principles and therefore end up getting pressured by other teens to do what their peers do without considering whether it is right or wrong.
Conclusively, peer pressure can be seen as a challenge that one has to go through daily. The only way to overcome it is by being bold enough to express our own thoughts and opinion. Additionally, peer pressure can have positive effects that can encourage teens to understand each other and also have good impacts on their lives.
References
Magill, E. (2011). Drug information for teens (1st ed.). Detroit: Omnigraphics.
Tarshis, T. (2010). Living with peer pressure and bullying (1st ed.). New York: Facts On File.
