Peer Pressure Is Not Bad! (PART 1 EDITED VERSION)

Despite my conviction that there is something that seems "off" about the subject of this written word, it is not a misprint. 

A psychological theory called the "Social Learning Theory" postulates that people learn new behaviours and go through the learning process by watching and copying others. This hypothesis is what is called peer pressure. All we have to do is engage with people in our immediate social circles—be they parents, teachers, friends, classmates, coworkers, influencers, or celebrities—in order to get knowledge from them.

Peer pressure, in my opinion, is not as harmful as the media portrays it to be.

1. People only use the phrase negatively when they have learned "wrong" behaviours from one another. This is the only reason we view it negatively. While you have undoubtedly heard the statement, "I started drinking alcohol because of peer pressure," you have probably never heard the one, "I became a billionaire because of peer pressure". 

2.We ignore the fact that the word "Peer Pressure" is in essence about adopting ideas and habits from others, not only people in our age group but anyone in general. The word "peer" in this context does not refer to age mates but simply a group of people. Your church mates can be peers and so can your family.

Going forward, I want to emphasise that peer pressure can be advantageous or disadvantageous. The word is always associated with negative behaviours; in other words, it connotes "Negative Peer Pressure" in our minds. 

Your family has put pressure on you in a variety of ways. For example, a newborn picks up on the routines and "speaking style" of those who are near to them, so if you live in a household where insults are exchanged, the baby will pick up on this and begin to mimic the behaviour.

Our "peers" in society can also be found in the broader community; this is why we dress the way we do and indirectly affect one another.We do not dislike clothing that was brought by Westerners, but we find it uncomfortable to wear traditional regalia on a daily basis for this reason. We fit in because following the majority's lead is simpler.

I will go deeper and present the data to back up my argument [in a series of posts, the first of which is this one] in order to make my idea that peer pressure is not always harmful clear. 

1.MODELING BEHAVIOR

In psychology, this concept is just as its name implies, referring to behavior molded by others’ actions. Four components contribute to modeling behavior, which are;

(a) Attention – an observer must watch and pay attention to selective behaviors of peers

(b) Retention – the observer must be able to recall the behavior well enough to recreate it

(c)Reproduction – an observer will recreate the actions

(d) Reinforcement – the observer’s behavior is reinforced, mostly through acceptance or praise

A simplified explanation can be summed up by the cliché monkey see, monkey do. It’s therefor important to surround yourself with peers driven by positive outcomes who can, for example, remain calm in highly stressful situations or who seek to lead healthy lifestyles. 

To Be Continued.....


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