5 Ways to Deal With Peer Pressure

If someone persistently pressures you to do something, you can try telling them how it affects you. You deserve to surround yourself with supportive people who respect your decisions—not people who pressure you into doing something that doesn’t feel right. They are also typically striving for social acceptance and are more willing to engage in behaviors against their better judgment in order to be accepted. Teens who volunteer in their community can keep each other motivated to participate.

If yes, then know that you are not the only one who has experienced peer pressure. Humans are social animals, and they have an innate need to fit in with or belong to a particular group and follow the rules of that group. Abraham Maslow, an American psychologist, says the need to belong has been seen as a basic human motivation. Children’s Health offers one of the most comprehensive specialty programs available for children and teens who need psychiatry and psychological services. We’re recognized experts on treating eating disorders, depression and other mood disorders.

Helping teens deal with peer pressure

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.

• “I think of these people as being like bumpers in a bowling lane, making sure your choices are in alignment with your values and you don’t veer off track,” she said.
• In social settings, adults can turn to nonalcoholic drinks as an alternative.
• Types of peer pressure include spoken and unspoken, direct and indirect, and negative and positive.
• We’re recognized experts on treating eating disorders, depression and other mood disorders.

In answering these questions, students can write short ‘success’ stories about how they would resist such negative peer pressure. The Teen Recovery Program addresses both mental health and substance abuse issues in an intensive outpatient level of care setting specifically designed for teens. The Children’s Health pediatric psychiatry and psychology department provides comprehensive services to support children’s and teens’ mental health.

Blame Parents

Make sure there is someone to call if you are feeling pressured to drink in social situations. Your peers should not control your decisions, so don’t let them. Seeing peers use substances regularly can also give the impression that the substances are safe to use or won’t have any negative effects. Peer pressure can not only bring about changes in behavior, but also thoughts, opinions, and feelings. While peer pressure is most frequently used to describe the influence of friends on teenagers, all people can be subject to peer pressure. When a person has been pressured into unhealthy habits, a counselor can help the individual reevaluate and change their behavior.

There are several different types of peer pressure that kids and adolescents may experience. Types of peer pressure include spoken and unspoken, direct and indirect, and negative and positive. Many people think peer pressure is about one forceful teen demanding that another, https://ecosoberhouse.com/ “Try this…or I’m not hanging out with you.” It is actually far more subtle. It’s more like a dance where everyone tries different moves to look like they know what steps to take. People make choices and engage in behaviors because they think it’s how they’ll fit in.

Parental Influence vs. Peer Pressure

You must also help them understand that there are times when it’s all right for them to say no. Taking illegal drugs, or driving with someone who has been drinking, are examples of times in which safety demands they say no. For example, if your teens feel uncomfortable going to parties where parents aren’t present, teach them how to politely decline a party invitation, saying no in a way that won’t cause hard feelings. If they are being pressured by friends to smoke cigarettes they might say, “No thanks. I feel sick from even just being around smoke.” Although we want our children to be polite, it is also vitally important, particularly for our girls, to know that a firm “No! When people learn to set their own limits, they’ll feel more in control of themselves in many situations throughout their lives.

Additionally, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, teens tend to overestimate how much their friends drink. Though teens weigh the risks and rewards of an activity just as adults do, teens are more likely to ignore the risk for the reward when their peers are present, according to a study published by the U.S. Peer pressure is internal or external pressure felt to behave in certain ways, both good and bad.

Talk to a Trusted Adult if They Feel Pressured

Learn more about the types and effects of peer pressure and how you can prepare your child to deal with it in a healthy way. Finally, model how you say no clearly and definitively through your own body language and words. As our teens watch us, they gain “practice” painlessly from our life experiences and modeling. Teens should never feel the pressure to say yes when their gut tells them no. Having the ability to say no and mean it might even be lifesaving.

No matter your age, you can practice not giving in to negative peer pressure and work on surrounding yourself with more positive influences. 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 a sexually transmitted infection (STI), developing pregnancy, or having images of yourself posted online without consent. Peer pressure is any type of influence, positive or negative, that comes from a peer group. This peer group may be of similar age (e.g., children in the same classroom) but it can also be defined by other commonalities, including motherhood, professional affiliations, and your local neighborhood.

Reevaluating Your Friendships

By doing so, their inner strength will help them stand firm with their feelings. A belief in themselves will help them do what they feel is right. That same confidence allows them to have less fear of failure. It’s a combination that lets them resist succumbing to peer pressure and have the strength to walk away.

If you’re a parent, you may have even coached your kids on this tactic. When someone is pressuring you to do something unhealthy, use eye contact and say “no” directly. If you have to explain yourself consider phrasing your thoughts in terms of, “I think, I will, I want.” But sometimes our social group can exert a negative influence as well, and rather than helping us reach new levels of success, they can hold us back. When we reach adulthood, we often think that some of the pains of childhood are behind us. But, worries about how we look, the desire to be accepted, sometimes even the willingness to do something just to fit in continue to affect us whether we’re teenagers or seniors.

Friends and classmates can influence decisions, especially during the adolescent and teenage years. See seven ways to help.

Peer pressure begins as early as age 10 with the forming of social groups in elementary school and increases during adolescence, throughout junior high and high school. Remind your teens that words are only a small part of the story we tell. Body language is also a big factor in what we communicate to others.

• This peer group may be of similar age (e.g., children in the same classroom) but it can also be defined by other commonalities, including motherhood, professional affiliations, and your local neighborhood.
• Left untreated, this could eventually lead teens to engage in self-harm or have suicidal thoughts.
• Is an Administrative Director of Research at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
• If it’s because all of your friends are doing it and you’re afraid they won’t talk to you if you don’t join them, then you may want to reconsider.
• Allowing others to make decisions for you can jeopardize your originality, self-esteem, happiness and physical and mental health.