Peer pressure is talked about in schools across the country everyday. It seems to be a big fear for parents that their kid may do things out of their comfort zone in order to please their friends, but is it really their friends who have the biggest influence on their decisions? Are the kids' friends really the main reason for them getting into mischief? The parents also play a big role in raising their kids and how they act. Peer pressure still exists, but is it as influential as we might think?

As kids grow up they learn, as well as make mistakes every single day. The problem is that not everybody can handle the consequences of these mistakes. An easy way out is simply to say something like “Johnny told me to.” Peer pressure is not a “be all, end all” force though. At the end of the day, Johnny can’t make you do anything. He might just be the final straw in doing something you were already thinking about doing anyways.

Parents have much more of an impact on big decisions their kids make. Peers are way more likely to influence kids on things like clothes, music, shoes, etc., than more important issues. Adolescents are more likely to think about what their parents taught them when it comes to important decisions/ideas like religion, morality, politics, and things like drugs and alcohol.

Bad examples presented by older teens are more of a problem than peer pressure. When freshmen see upperclassmen drinking/smoking/vaping, they are more likely to want to be like them in order to look cool. If a teenager says no to a alcohol or drugs, peer pressure to partake is practically unheard of.

At the end of the day, peer pressure definitely is still around, but it may not be as big of a deal as people make it out to be. Kids are way more likely to be influenced by their parents, than their friends. So, if you use peer pressure as an excuse for yourself or your kids to act out, think again. No matter what, you always have control of you.