Peer Pressure Essay Example

It is known but not noticed. Unseen but possesses the ability to influence what is. Peer pressure is something that everyone is taught to avoid but never to acknowledge. Every person has felt the need to fit in with the world and never be different - never to express one's true self. People create standards for themselves to fit in with the current trends or the celebrities they see online. The pressure was never something that could force you into oblivion but could manipulate us into thinking that what they make us believe is what is right. Controversial thoughts can arise when the pressure can be direct or indirect, neither positive nor negative, and change the lives of those whom it affects for the better or worse. 

It is evident that peer pressure produces change. However, the shift comes from both direct and indirect pressure. 

Direct pressure is clear express instruction from someone in the peer group to another telling him what to do. Indirect peer pressure is not so obvious. Implied pressure might be felt by the attitudes of a peer group concerning dress or actions, influencing others to conform to their beliefs. Individual peer pressure occurs when a child feels insecure about himself and wants to fit in. The desire to not want to be left out of what others are doing encourages the reasoning that “everyone is doing it.” (“Picture Perfect Playgrounds, Inc..”)

Many teens feel obligated to adhere to current trends no matter the consequence. Being directly influenced by peer pressure can be one of the most challenging things a teen can face because teens fear ridicule and losing friends over things they did not do (Hardy). On the contrary, indirect pressure is affiliated with peer-group pressure because it influences many to comply with the group’s expectations and become like the majority. For example, whenever a new toy comes out, many people begin to buy it, and people are influenced by society making it feel like they need that toy even though they don’t. A perfect example of this was the fidget spinners back in 2017. Over the years, similar events happen repeatedly without fault. Direct and indirect pressure has the same effect of influencing the choices and mentality of people. It is solely a choice to make whether or not what you decide will create a positive or negative impact on your life. 

When given the phrase, peer pressure, the first thought would seem to be associated with negativity. Though it is presumed to be a pessimistic topic, it can also be quite practical. Positive pressure encourages people to attempt diverse experiences and grow as an individual. Compared to adults, “teenagers are more susceptible to the influence of a crowd or their friends. While they are learning about their social place and their identity, they are subconsciously looking to their friends for information about how to act and interact with others (“Encourage Positive Peer Pressure.”). A teen's brain is hypersensitive to the thoughts of others and their position in their friend groups which makes teens overthink every single thing about themselves. Throughout the development of the minds and bodies of teenagers, peer pressure can take a toll on one's self-esteem and image. “In fact, body image is so important to adolescents that 36% of adolescent females are unhappy about their weight and 59% are trying to lose weight” (Papp). 

Even though positive pressure is a good thing, it is unfortunately not as common as its negative counterpart. This discloses why a majority of society believes that peer pressure is constantly a bad thing. Negative pressure is when they are influenced by the wrong group of people and are more likely to engage in risky behaviours such as dangerous driving, drug abuse, binge drinking, and risky sexual activity. In times like these, multiple studies show that teens would rather receive support from their peers rather than their parents because they feel more comfortable with their friends. “Organizations such as the Red Cross, use peer educators to teach teenagers about safe sex because they have found that teens are more likely to listen to positive messages when they come from those in their age group. The National Association of Independent Schools suggests having older teens who do not use drugs or alcohol talk to middle schoolers to help influence them to make positive choices” (Zeiger).  One of the most difficult things a teen can go through is being directly influenced by peer pressure and obliging themselves into doing what they are told. In the transition between adolescents and teens, they go through a phase where they are discovering their self-identities. Through this period, the principles they have grown up in may be blurred and they may conform to the ideals of society even if it is with the “wrong crowd” (Papp). Everyone will experience some type of peer pressure growing up, no matter how rare or often it will happen. But one has e to discover the truth and decide whether or not their decision to accept or deny it will create dynamic changes in their lives. 

The change people choose to accept will be influenced by the people they associate with their lives. Many celebrities have felt the pressure from social media regarding fans wanting to know about their personal lives. The biggest place where everyone receives pressure and influence is social media. Numerous female teens feel insecure about their bodies, especially when they see all those skinny models on social media promoting “thin ideals.” Rihanna spoke against pressure by stating, “You shouldn’t be pressured into trying to be thin by the fashion industry, because they only want models that are like human mannequins. You have to remember that it’s not practical or possible for an everyday woman to look like that. It’s not realistic and it’s not healthy.” (Monroe).  However, girls are not the only ones that feel this way. Boys experience the pressure as well because of the expectations social media creates that boys should look like this or boys should be like that. No matter the circumstance, everyone will feel insecure about their appearance, affecting their mental health. Today, teens still feel the effects of peer pressure, “90% of teens admit to being influenced or pressured by peers. Nearly three-quarters say that giving in to peer pressure has boosted their social standing” (“Peer Pressure: Why It Seems Worse than Ever…”). Many celebrities have the power to change the world and influence anything with what they do. When an image of a model appears, many tend to idolize it and create an unrealistic standard making them not feel like enough. According to multiple studies, many teens experience depression and anxiety from the unrealistic standards they create for themselves just from photoshopped images online. Kevin Gates, an American songwriter, and rapper, once said “If you associate yourself with peer pressure or complacency, you’re destined for failure.”

Peer pressure is something that can go unnoticed but it influences the choices, emotional, and mental being of one's self. Many believe they can choose to ignore the pressure, but some fall into the feeling of obligation of doing what they seem is “OK” (“Peer Pressure (for Teens) - Nemours Kidshealth.”). Direct or indirect, positive or negative, the impact of peer pressure is something that should not be ignored so easily. It is crucial to understand that various types of pressure affect either the world or individuals. Multiple studies show that negative peer pressure can affect teens drastically, but it is still not acknowledged. Though peer pressure can influence decisions, the pressure can only do so much as leaving us with the choice to comply with the world's unrealistic standards or be different.