Peer pressure, which brings about behavioral impacts on youngsters, has enjoyed different statuses from the general public, whether it is essential or not. In this context, the sound advantages of peer pressure considerably outweigh the possible disadvantages, in terms of competitiveness amid adolescents and social bonds with like-minded people.
To commence with, the intangible pressure among individuals in the same age group may prompt competitiveness and desires to improve themselves. A survey conducted by a American high school points out that a class largely occupied with high-profile students later show the identical academic results among all. It indicates that staying in a climate surrounded by thriving and conscientious peers can provoke the needs in each young person for self-innovation to become comparable and catch up with others.
Another advantage to mention is the potential social connections created. As the young may look up to others who embrace better academic performance, the incentives to learn from superior peers may be initiated. The eventual results can be the formation of groups of friends on the same wavelength and aspiring to enhance their knowledge via others’ grasp. These tendencies, in the long run, may create an organic community where peers support each other and cooperate to achieve significant achievements such as university graduation or entrepreneurial ventures.
However, it can be argued that the advantages may backfire, turning peer pressure into mental burdens on individuals. Those adverse influences may stem from the expectations of parents and even contemporary society, in which young people are constantly compared to each other and success becomes the measure of worthiness. Adolescents can fall into anxiety and depression, paired with lack of encouragement from families, which render them believe their inferiority and not motivate themselves to move forward. However, these effects are far from firm to eclipse said advantages, since parents and the public can modify their anticipation, knowing the potential detriments of this kind of pressure that adolescents may undergo, and therefore alleviate the negativity of it.
To sum up, despite mental issues springing from peer competition, the advantages are still convincing enough to hold the dominance, including being the fuel of self-development and expanding social circles.