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Self-awareness involves understanding our values, beliefs, strengths, and weaknesses. By cultivating self-awareness, we gain a clearer understanding of who we are and what matters to us. This self-knowledge acts as a which of the following is a type of indirect peer pressure? compass, guiding us in making decisions that align with our authentic selves and resisting the pressure to conform. Cultivating self-confidence when you’re feeling down is super powerful to tap into our inner values.
What are the positives of peer pressure?
- a sense of belonging and support.
- increased self-confidence.
- introduction to positive hobbies and interests.
- reinforcement of positive habits and attitudes.
Peer pressure often stems from a lack of confidence from the one doing the pressuring. The person is often seeking validation for their reckless or unhealthy behaviors from others. Your conviction will be off-putting, and they’ll back down. The first step in avoiding peer pressure is to define your values and beliefs. When you clearly understand what is important to you, it becomes easier to resist the temptation to conform to others’ opinions or behaviors.
Positive Peer Pressure
Peer pressure can be both subtle and overt and manifest in various ways. For example, teenagers may feel pressured to try drugs or alcohol, engage in sexual activity, or skip school to fit in with their peers. Adults may feel pressured to conform to certain social norms, such as participating in gossip or engaging in unhealthy behaviors like overeating or smoking. When you feel peer pressure, it might be because your friends encourage you to change your attitude, values, or behaviors to conform to those of the peer group. This can have positive and negative outcomes, sometimes both.
The desire to fit in and feel like you are part of a group is normal, and most people feel this way sometimes, especially in the teen and young adult years. Peer pressure, that feeling that you have to do something to fit in, be accepted, or be respected, can be tough to deal with. Dealing with this pressure can be challenging, but it’s important to reflect on your own personal values and preferences and make decisions based on those rather than on peer pressure.
Adults Suffer Peer Pressure Too
Even if no one tells the teenager to smoke a cigarette in the example above, the teen may still feel pressured by their peers to partake in the activity because it seems like everyone is doing it. “Teens are biologically programmed to care about popularity in adolescence,” says Mitch Prinstein, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at UNC Chapel Hill. His research indicates teenagers focus on the behaviors of their popular peers because in most cases, it influences their own. His research spotlights an interesting correlation between the number of friends a child has, and his or her vulnerability to influence, both positive and negative. Over-drinking is almost a sport and the pressure to join in can be intense.
Is peer pressure always damaging?
Peer pressure is commonly thought of in a negative light, but in reality, it's not always a bad thing. Sometimes peer pressure is used to positively influence people, such as when teens work toward common goals such as doing well in school or helping out in their community.
We are all familiar with the concept of peer pressure from after-school specials and anti-drug campaigns directed at adolescents. Whether these efforts to promote various kinds of abstinence had any effect on you as a teen or not, peer pressure doesn’t disappear with adulthood. In fact, social pressure becomes more effective and complex as https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/alcohol-vs-drugs-comparison-of-addictions/ we age, and finding ways to resist the influence of our peers requires increasingly more creativity and conviction. In addiction recovery, it is likely you will encounter peer pressure to use substances at some point. This is especially true for those with alcohol addictions that have continued to maintain a high-functioning lifestyle.
Adult Peer Pressure
Once you have decided to seek treatment and have entered recovery, however, it may not be possible to maintain relationships with people who do not wish to help themselves. AspenRidge Recovery offers ongoing support to individuals facing substance abuse. Peer pressure influences are notorious for triggering the dangerous use of alcohol and drugs. Peer pressure is a genuine concern for millions of Americans. It can lead to poor decisions and impact relaxation and sleep, among other things.
If most people are, the party must be boring and you’ll probably want to leave. Give yourself permission to not hang out with boring drunk people. For example, peers can pressure bullies into acting better toward other kids.
Resistance to peer pressure increases between the ages of 14 to 18 but does not change hardly at all between the ages of 18 to 30. As people begin to disengage from parental influence in later adolescence, it becomes more possible to develop one’s own inner identity. As this happens, an individual becomes more engaged with the core values and beliefs that help stand up against the negative influence of others. If you feel pressured by people to do things you’re uncomfortable doing, there are lots of ways to respond.
Peer pressure is any type of influence, positive or negative, that comes from a peer group. Unfortunately, we will all deal with peer pressure at some point in our life. Setting realistic expectations involves recognizing one’s limitations, values, and priorities.
