A lot is known about self-esteem and conforming peer pressure separately. There is not much known about the effects of one on the other. Peer pressure, the feelings of pressure to engage in something that those you associate with are doing, when it works negatively is a large problem and can cause conflicts throughout life. Conforming to peer pressure can have both positive and negative effects. The pressure can cause a person who conforms to make themselves better or worse.
Many factors influence a person’s susceptibility to succumb to peer pressure. A person’s likelihood to be influenced can be affected by their level of self-esteem or their positive/ negative view of themselves. If a person conforms to peer pressure easily and has a low self-esteem level it may be beneficial to attain extra extrinsic support against peer pressure, especially in cases where the peer pressure influences a person negatively. This extrinsic support is reinforcement from an outside source to do or not do something. It is possible that those with high self-esteem are just less likely to be susceptible to peer pressure because they do not care what others think. In contrast lower self-esteem can cause people to devalue their own opinion and it may be associated with a higher rate of conformity.
Problems Caused by Low Self- Esteem Levels
Those with low levels of self-esteem are also known to have other problems in their lives, either in school/work or social situations. A person who has low levels of self-esteem is known to be susceptible to other so called deviant behaviors including poor grades and alcoholism and other substance use. It was found that high levels of self-esteem correlates negatively with the factors listed above, meaning that those with high levels of self-esteem also have fair grades, and are less likely to use some type of drugs or alcohol and vice versa (Zimmerman, Copeland, Shope, & Dielman, 1997). This means that low levels of self-esteem corresponds to participating in negative behaviors which can be caused by peer pressure.
Extrinsic Support from Family Members
Having an ability to resist peer pressure is usually a result of some other factors, such as strong family ties which may be important in increasing resistance to peer pressure. The relationship between a person and their family is usually considered important. Studies have recently show that they are more important than would be noticed at first glance. Having strong family ties has been shown to provide resistance to peer pressure and that having factors in a person’s life such as maternal warmth and positive psychological connections with family members causes a greater resistance to peer pressure (Chan & Chan, 2013). Other factors in family life influence the levels of resistance to peer pressures. It was noticed that in immigrants, those who had a low generational status, meaning their families recently immigrated and had a good relationship with their parents were less likely...