High Peer Pressure Research Articles

Take Out Your Cell Phones - Class is Starting -- Revisited

Traditionally cell phones have been viewed as disruptive and an obstacle to pedagogy in the classroom. Three years ago, a survey of students led us to the conclusion that the presence of cell phones is inevitable, and rather than fight a losing battle we adopted them into our classroom pedagogy. At CEEA 2012 the authors presented the initial results of a pilot project and the preliminary results of a first year implementation. The adhoc implementation resulted in many successes in removing barriers to student – instructor interaction such as lecture hall size, high peer pressure, and low student confidence. Unfortunately this adhoc implementation was also resource intensive and had limited room for expansion. In the 2012-13 academic year the course has redesigned its use of cell phones in the classroom to take advantage of a newly developed commercial classroom engagement software called Top Hat. This new implementation has allowed the authors to achieve the benefit of the adhoc system, an innovative method of asking questions in class, while also replacing the existing classroom response system. Students are now able to use Short Messaging Service (SMS) on their cell phones to both ask questions in real time and response to word, numeric or multiple choice questions posed by the instructor. Additionally the system has extensive room for growth. The logistics of the current initiative, student and instructor impressions, and future plans for the technology in our classroom will be discussed.

The contribution of family climate for road safety and social environment to the reported driving behavior of young drivers

Two studies examined the contribution of the new concept of “family climate for road safety” and several aspects of the social environment to the driving behavior of young drivers. Study 1 (n=120) investigated the effect of the seven dimensions of the family climate for road safety – Modeling, Feedback, Communication, Monitoring, Noncommitment, Messages, and Limits – as well as a general tendency to conform to authority, and peer pressure. Study 2 (n=154) examined the dimensions of family climate for road safety and perceived popularity of reckless driving among peers. The findings indicate associations both between the familial and the social aspects, and between these variables and driving styles, willingness to take risks while driving, reckless driving habits, and personal commitment to safe driving. Positive aspects of the parent–child relationship and high levels of conformity to authority were related to greater endorsement of the careful driving style, whereas family's noncommitment to safety, higher peer pressure, and lower conformity to authority were associated with greater endorsement of the reckless driving style. In addition, positive aspects of the family climate for road safety and lower perceived popularity of reckless driving among friends were associated with more personal commitment to safe driving and a lower tendency for risky driving. The discussion stresses the need to look at the complex set of antecedents of reckless driving among young drivers and addresses the practical implications of the findings for road safety.

Alcohol Use, Problem Drinking and Health Risk Factors Among South African Youths

The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and associated factors of problem drinking among South African youth (18–24 years). A cross-sectional population-based household survey was conducted using a multi-stage stratified cluster sampling approach. The total sample included 3123 participants (age range 18–24 years, 45.4% women) from four of nine provinces in South Africa. Results indicate that current alcohol was relatively more common among male (40.7%) than female youths (21.3%). Similarly, hazardous or harmful drinking was more prevalent among males (24.3%) than among women (12.9%). In multivariable analyses among men and women high on sexually permissiveness had hazardous or harmful alcohol use. Lifestyle including high peer pressure, and spending more nights away in a week were associated with hazardous or harmful alcohol use.

The relationship between alcohol use and peer pressure susceptibility, peer popularity and general conformity in Northern Irish school children

This cross-sectional study investigated the bivariate and more fully controlled (with socio-demographic measures) relationship between self-reported drinking behaviour and peer pressure susceptibility, desire for peer popularity and general conformity in a sample of 11–16-year-old school children in Northern Ireland. Self-reported drinking behaviour was assessed using a composite measure of drinking behaviour, the Adolescent Alcohol Involvement Scale (Mayer, J., & Filstead, W.J. (1979). The adolescent alcohol involvement scale. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 40, 291–300). Post-primary (High) schools in the Greater Belfast Area were targeted and 629 participants were recruited of whom 610 (97%) successfully completed a set of questionnaires. Bivariate and more fully controlled regression analyses revealed that problematic alcohol use was predicted by higher peer pressure susceptibility, lower desire for popularity and lower general conformity. More problematic drinking was also predicted by being in Middle versus Junior school, and by being female. Despite the suggestion that alcohol use among adolescents is normative behaviour, these results suggest that increasing levels of drinking, assessed by a composite measure are associated with the social risk factors assessed, namely greater susceptibility to peer pressure, less conformity and lower levels of desire for peer popularity.

Peer pressure: a cause of scholastic underachievement? A cross-cultural study of mathematical achievement among German, Canadian, and Israeli middle school students

The present study examines consequences of high peer pressure on academic performance in mathematics among 14-year-old middle-school students in Germany, Canada, and Israel. Its core assumption is that students with very high abilities in mathematics underachieve in order to avoid social exclusion (in the form of being called, e.g., nerds) in their schools. Altogether almost 1,700 students were surveyed in the three cultures. Findings of the study make it obvious that—concerning achievement in mathematics—the primary victims of peer pressure in middle school are girls, boys more likely than girls being the perpetrators. High individual preferences of achievement values can buffer effects of peer pressure. However, from a pedagogical point of view it may nevertheless seem an option to teach mathematics in mono-gender courses, in order to improve the chances of both girls and boys to show an academic performance that concurs with their real competence.

Quantifying rice farmers’ pest management decisions: beliefs and subjective norms in stem borer control

The paper introduces the pest belief model and Fishbein and Ajzen's theory of reasoned action to analyze farmers’ decisions in stem borer management. Farmers spent an average of $39/ha (median $18) on insecticides believing that if they had not controlled an average loss of 1004 kg/ha or $402 (median 592, $237) would occur. Farmers’ estimates of the worst attack averaged 19 white heads/m 2 (median10) with the associated average loss of 1038 kg/ha or $415 (median 592, $270), implying that farmers’ decisions were guided by the worst attacks. Perceived benefits from insecticides were directly related with farmers’ insecticide use and perceived severity. Perceived susceptibility was also high, with 59% of farmers believing that a loss of 450 kg/ha would be “extremely or very likely”. Farmers believed insecticides could destroy natural enemies but placed only moderate importance to conserving them. Health was believed to be very important but farmers had mixed beliefs that spraying could bring about poor health. This study also provides evidence suggesting high peer pressure on farmers’ spray decisions directly influencing perceived benefits from sprays, insecticide spending and spray frequency.