The Effects of Peer Pressure on Academic Achievements
Posted: January 4th, 2023
The Effects of Peer Pressure on Academic Achievements
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Abstract
Researchers have proven that peer sociolisation play a fundamental function in human growth and development. The process of sociolisation stretches beyond early familial connections and is established in a child’s early academic experiences. Early school encounters offer the basis for future behaviors in both social and academic settings, which makes it imperative for individuals to select peers who will direct them in the wrong direction. The study pays particular attention to how peer influence impact on a person’s academic performance, and shows that the effects are more harmful when a student indulges in negative peer pressure. The analysis urges learners to avoid peer pressure that could lead them to drug and substance abuse because such hallucinating substances affect the way the brain functions, and to avoid behavioral maladjustment that could affect academic performance. The research calls on various stakeholders, including parents, instructors, and learners to take embrace measures that would lead to the selection and keeping of friends who direct someone to the right path.
The Effects of Peer Pressure on Academic Achievements
Introduction
Peers influence people’s worlds throughout their lives in many aspects but for no group more than adolescents. Peer pressure can determine the schools the learners attend, the risky behaviors they engage in, and their academic performance. The study shows how peer pressure emerges to be a strong force influencing educational decisions and whether learners undertake essential investments that could advance academic results of performance. Learners must select their peers very carefully because their decisions may either introduce them to helpful or destructive friends. Failing to identify and keep the right friends expose someone to many threats, including the inability to perform well in class and other academic-related activities. Someone who relates with misleading peers increases their chances of getting into drug and alcohol use and often such learners lose focus on academic issues. Drug and alcohol addiction drive many peers to irresponsible use of money, which could otherwise help to purchase learning materials. Drug and alcohol dependence affect the cognitive capabilities of many learners, and often the users fail to perform well in class as opposed to those who do not use such hallucinations because they keep friends who do not use such hallucinogens. Learners who pay much attention to peer influence develop other destructive behaviors such as irresponsible sexual practices, gambling, unregulated shopping, and unprotected internet use, which could affect academic performance if someone spends much time in such activities to impress their peers while failing to pay equal attention to educational matters.
Research Questions
- What is the meaning of peer pressure?
- What is the difference between positive and negative peer pressure?
- How does negative peer pressure affect academic performance?
- How does positive peer pressure impact on academic performance?
- What are some of the effective ways of preventing the adverse effects of peer pressure on academic performance?
Aims and Objectives
- To describe the various perceptions and descriptions of peer pressure.
- To assess the effects of positive and negative peer pressure.
- To examine the nature of peer pressure on students’ academic performance.
- To assess the various ways of dealing with peer pressure, especially as it relates to improving academic performance.
Methodology
The research uses the systematic review of available literature, while incorporating the quantitative and qualitative aspects. The type of the research questions needs a critical evaluation of the available relevant literature examining the effects of peer pressure on students’ academic performance. The task involves recognising the most suitable works and appropriate literature that clearly answers the research questions in the most direct and effective manner. Regarding the sampling strategy, the approach commences with formulating a inclusion and exclusion guideline, which allows the researcher to address all the research questions more effectively, while ensuring all the included literature achieve the set requirements and standards. All the works providing data for the research were published from 2002 to 2020 to come up with relevant and suitable argument and information. Gathering data from the published and unpublished works acts as the main way of collecting information. The search terms the research utilizes to collect the suitable data, include but not restricted to, peer pressure, academic performance, peer influence, drug use, sociolisation, teenagers, and youth.
Scope
The research examines the extensive research of the effects of peer pressure of academic performance and considers the possible remedies in existing scholarly literature to comprehend issues relate to peer influence that most affect academic outcome.
Limitations
The main limitation in the study relates to the issues with the quality of some literature used to gather data. Even though all the published and unpublished works include the name of the authors, it is not possible to authenticate the credibility and reliability of the source unless it is apparent that it is a peer review sources. Nonetheless, the limitation does not have much impact on data collection and representation because the data collector pays adequate attention while identifying and selecting the sources.
Structure of Subsequent Sections
The subsequent sections of the study give important insight into the subject that could help to respond to the research questions. The literature review is an analysis of the available works on the subject matter and compares and contrasts information from different sources. The section is the most extended section of the entire report because most of the illustrations of the effects of peer influence fall within this area. The literature review provides some hint on the conflicting information on the subject, and provides readers with the chance to understand how information from one source differs or compares with the content in other sources. Next is the methods part, and here the study describes how it gathers data using the systematic review approach to react to the research questions and objectives. The methods sections include the sampling approach and the data collection and analysis methods sections. Next is the findings section, which offers an overview of what the sources present on the topic. The findings are the key aspects in the various sources that form part of the systematic review process.
Discussion follows the findings part, and here the study gives a general overview about the research and the findings. The discussion part develops a wider view to the audience about the study and the outcome, and creates the urge to take suitable measures to combat peer pressure. The data analysis part follows and the report in this section evaluates the gathered data to provide the audience a more inclusive perception of the topic. The data and analysis section incorporates the researches of various scholars to create an argument that could impact on various parties, including learners, instructors, and researchers among others. The recommendation section follows and here the audience draws helpful information that could help to reduce the effects of negative peer influence on academic performance. The recommendations give guidelines that could help learning institutions, parents, and individuals deal with the issues occurring from peer influence. The last part is conclusion, which offers an overview of the entire study by recalling the main points. The conclusion provides the target audiences with a glimpse of the entire study.
Literature Review
Describing Peer Pressure
Peers refer to those who belong to the same social group, so pressure refers to the influence than peers can impact on each other. Although the peer pressure does not really have to yield negative effects, the term pressure suggests that the socialisation influences individuals to act in ways they could not without such pressure. Hartney (2020) refers to peers as people who belong to the same social group, and social pressure as the effects that peers can have on each other. Moldes, Biton, Gonzaga, and Moneva (2019) describe peer pressure as peers encouraging their fellows to do things with or without their desires. Moldes, Biton, Gonzaga, and Moneva (2019) attribute peer pressure to the lack of adequate parental supervision towards their offspring during adolescence, when children happen to enjoy the company of their peers and spend time with them more during the period. Often, the term peer pressure is more applicable in scenarios where people talk about actions that are not deemed socially desirable or acceptable, such as indulgence in alcohol and drugs. Thus, the term peer pressure does not usually refer to desirable actions, such as studying or physical exercise. Peer pressure in reality can have both positive and negative effects on a person (Moldes, Biton, Gonzaga & Moneva, 2019). For example, positive peer pressure could lead a young person to indulge in constructive activities such as such as sports or increased learning. However, the same peer pressure could result in negative effects if a person does not put a limit to the socialization process (Moldes, Biton, Gonzaga & Moneva, 2019). For example, such a person may over indulge in socialisation, causing her to neglect social activities and schoolwork, and finally, uses the socialization as the major strategy to overcome stress in life.
Effects of Peer Pressure on Academic Performance
Several developmental researches on adolescents and youths suggest that, relative to adults and children, they are more sensitive and at a high reaction to various social stimuli such as social feedback and expressions. However, the proof for hypersensitivity to social stimuli among the adolescents indicate that the age group may be more likely to be susceptible to either negative or positive peer stimuli when making decisions (Kremer & Levy, 2008). Also, undergraduate students have a higher propensity than adults to take risks with drugs, tobacco, and alcohol, reckless driving, unsafeguarded sexual practice, and criminal acts, which all affect academic outcome (Kremer & Levy, 2008). Adolescents and the youth are at a higher chance of indulging in practices that could affect their academic outcome despite the fact that they have the values, knowledge and capability to assess risky practices in the same way as adults (Kremer & Levy, 2008). The high risk of engaging in practices that could affect a person’s academic performance due to peer pressure requires the population to take much caution while interacting with peers to avoid losing much of the knowledge they have gained through learning, or to stall the rate at which they acquire knowledgeable information.
The peer pressure can have adverse effects on academic performance if a student engages in practices that would result in addiction. Peer influence can push students to engage in practices they would not do on their own with the objective of being noticed or fitting into the group, and this can include trying with drugs and alcohol. Olalekan (2016) asserts that peer group pressure on risk taking practices such as substance abuse have shown much relationship with the possibility of interfering with performance in an adverse way. Bankole and Ogunsakin (2015) echo the sentiments by opining that drug consumption among students due to peer group influence substantially determines academic outcome. Beyond prompting students to use intoxicating substances, peer pressure, or the interest to impress their friends can overcome the teenager’s fear of taking risks. The risky practices with alcohol and drugs can push students to overdose, be a victim of drug poisoning, engage in accidents, and become victims of addition. All these threats put the learner at a considerable risk of witnessing reduced academic performance, especially if the student engages in drug use and dependence for so long. The student will spend most of the time doing drugs or consuming alcohol rather than revising, and taking part in academic-related practices. Also, such students would dedicate most of the money they get to purchasing drugs and other hallucinating items instead of buying items such as books, laptops, and other reading materials to facilitate their academic performance. The peer pressure that leads to drug dependence has adverse academic performance on individuals, and one must take suitable measures to avoid falling into the trap.
Continued use of drug and alcohol due to peer pressure expose users to considerable cognitive problems, which could affect their academic performance. Juarez-Portilla et al. (2017) inform that the disorders connected to the misuse of particular drugs represent not only a global public health concern, but also a social and economic problem. Juarez-Portilla et al. (2017)feel that children and adolescents constitute the most affected groups for drug use and addiction yet they constitute the largest school-going population. Students who use drugs are at a higher risk of recording poor academic performance because drug abuse interferes with crucial activities such as inhibition and decision-making, likely exposing the user to relapse and addiction. Most researchers of substance abuse once believed that it is easier to understand the effects of drug use and addition by examining the reinforcing effects (Gould, 2010). Pharmacological researchers have long concurred with the perception, revealing that abusing drugs has dramatic effects on the dopamine system in the brain, which controls emotional reactions and serves a function in abuse by causing emotional readjustment for prolonged use. Increasingly, however, researchers are discovering that the issue is more intricate (Gould, 2010). Such findings suggest learners should avoid the peer pressure that would lead them to drug use and dependence to avoid disrupting their studies.
The peer pressure can affect academic performance because such unregulated socialisations can result in adverse behavioral maladjustment that could affect individual well-being as well as academic outcome. Peer pressure can push students to indulge in activities they see their friends doing, which can put them at risk for dangerous behaviors that affect academic outcome (Manski, 2000). For example, peer pressure can result in sex addiction, which could have detrimental effects on the learning practices. The learner may spend more time thinking of the sexual practices they usually perform with peers instead of focusing on the learning activities, and consequently the academic performance will drop (Manski, 2000). Peer influence can cause unregulated video game addiction that could reduce the time they dedicate to educational practices. For example, a person may dedicate most of the time to playing games, which may deny the student enough time to do class work and personal studies. Some uncontrolled peer influence could result in improper internet use, and the student may access some sites that destruct their attention (Ryan, 2002). For example, the peers could spend much time watching films over the internet, or may develop the passion of visiting pornographic, which is even more destructive for students. Peer influence drive learners to unrestricted gambling practices, which have direct harm on the learner’s academic outcome (Boucher, Bramoule, Djebbari & Forton, 2010). The peers may create the impression among them that gambling may provide them with additional income, and make them trendy among their age group. Unfortunately, unguided gambling practices affect learning outcome because a learner hardly has the time to neither read nor focus on their studies, especially when they lost a lot of money in a recent gamble (Ryan, 2002). Peer pressure is detrimental to academic outcome because the friends may develop or instill in other the act of unregulated shopping behaviour. The peers would use all the time they have to shop for everything and allocate little time to studying (Ryan, 2002). The behavioural effects of peer influence can affect how a student performs in class, and all stakeholders should take proper measures to prevent the adverse effects of unrestricted socialisation.
Evident Gap
Evident contrast appears in the way some scholars present their perception on the effects of peer influence on academic performance. For example, Goethe (2011) discovered that weak learners perform better when they are put together with other weak learners. Goethe learned that the student’s academic outcome advances if they ware with the learners of their own level and type. Sacerdote (2001), on the other hand, found that the grades become better when learners have academically competent peers. Also, Zimmerman (2003) developed contradictory views to the findings by Goethe, but again it demonstrated that the learners’ academic outcome depends on several factors, including that ill-mannered and weak students might affect the output of strong and competent trainees. Olalekan (2016) says that it is generally witnessed that peer influence has immense impact students. Olalekan (2016) feels that the role peer influence plays at childhood is immense, and as someone grows they become more relaxed and comfortable among fellow peers. Olalekan (2016) supports the argument that a student who is bright and constantly interacts with dull peers would lose interest in academic practices. On the other hand, a peer group, which frequently studies would have beneficial impact on a weak member towards academic activities and promote his or her interests on learning. Olalekan (2016) further argues that the nature and influence of a peer group determine the influence on the influence on the achievement and influence of its member. The analysis shows that scholars still have varying perceptions regarding the effects of weak and competent learners on other weak and proficient learners, but the notion that spending more time with knowledgeable students increase educational competent seem to receive overwhelming support.
How to Avoid Peer Pressure
Although many parents worry about the possible effects of peer pressure, overall parents and guardians can have a significant impact on whether the child or student continue with developing behaviours that affect their academic performance. Instead of worrying about the potential adversities of peer influence on the child, parents would make considerable impact by formulating a positive and supportive home environment, void of harmful peer influence and reach to destructive substances such as drugs and alcohol (Hartney, 2020). Parents and guardians can play other essential roles in helping students focus on their academic activities rather than giving in to the false impression of peer influence. Parents should urge their children to always think before doing anything that could cause adverse effects. The parents should always remind teenagers and youths to consider whether certain social interactions could lead to harmful effects, or whether following the practices of a particular peer group will have adverse health effects (Hartney, 2020). The parent should remain involved in the life of their child because the parental guidance offer immense influence on how the youth socialises or talk. Staying away as a parent could provide the youth with a chance to interact with individuals who could lead them astray or destruct their focus on academic issues.
Educators may also contribute towards proper relationship among learners with the objective of improving their academic outcome. The first step according to Mosha (2017) is to help learners know that their behaviors constantly impact those around them. The instructor should teach the trainees how to assess influences and know and handle emotions independently. The tutor should help learners decide what influences they require in their lives. Assisting students recognize their role models and promoting good decisions is paramount, whether they are school-mates or friends (Mosha, 2017). Training students on how to identify the right role model is important because constructive and positive role models help empower learners and ignite their desires. Educators must educate learners around the decisions they will face in life and trust them with making suitable decisions if students must avoid the company of destructive or less constructive peers (Mosha, 2017). Furthermore, instructors should reframe the talk around peer pressure and peer influence if all stakeholders are going to effectively deal with both the effects and the disorders of adverse peer impact on how learners make decisions.
Individual learners can take suitable measures to avoid being victims of negative peer pressure, especially with regard to academic performance. Students should pay particular attentions to the lessons on the effects of negative peer influence and acquire teachings that would help them to maintain the right company (Leka, 2015). Learners should conduct researches from various sources to find suitable information that would help them avoid bad company, and to identify and maintain peers who can contribute to positive academic performance (Leka, 2015). Students should be close to their parents and teachers to acquire helpful insight into ways of staying away from peers who can destruct someone from focusing on academic issues, and paying attention to issues that may not have any constructive benefit (Leka, 2015). Individuals should be able to choose between what is right and wrong, and should be able to make the right decisions when they realize the peers they keep deter them from paying much attention to their academic activities.
All stakeholders must take it seriously that peer influence among youth serves an important function during the adolescent stage of a teenager. The study paints the image that the age group acts as a time when individuals create strong friendship among their colleagues and become everlasting during their adolescence stage. The study shows that unless various stakeholders take the appropriate measures to prevent the adverse effects of peer pressure on the youth, learners may fail to achieve their academic goals, and their ultimate goals in life. Parents, teachers, and individual learners should take suitable approaches to ensure peer pressure does not affect education performance and the focus people have in various socioeconomic aspects.
Methods and Materials
Research Strategy
The study uses the systematic review of existing literature as the primary research strategy. The strategy entails conducting a systematic review of the available works on the subject that respond to one or more of the research questions. The obligation in this situation is to identify and evaluate several literatures that could respond to the research questions in a clear and direct way (Gopalakrishnan & Ganeshkumar, 2013). Using the systematic review to complete the study follows a definite structure that would result in the desired goals and objectives. The initial stage is focusing in the research questions to know what kind of literature is necessary for the study (Gopalakrishnan & Ganeshkumar, 2013). The strategy in this case will seek to respond to factors such as the meaning of peer pressure, the differences between constructive and negative peer pressure, the effects of negative peer pressure on academic performance, the positive impact of peer pressure on academic performance, and the useful ways of preventing the horrible effects of peer pressure on academic performance. The second phase is to decide on the studies to include in the review using the inclusion and exclusion eligibility criteria (Gopalakrishnan & Ganeshkumar, 2013). The third stage would be to search for the studies by outlining the sources the researcher will use for the study and the search terms that makes it possible to settle on the most suitable sources. The fourth phase is selecting the studies and gathering the necessary data. The researcher at this stage takes data from researches that achieve the prearranged eligibility qualities (Gopalakrishnan & Ganeshkumar, 2013). The fifth phase is to evaluate the risks of bias in the incorporated studies to make sure that all the studies are suitable and effective. The final stage of the research strategy is to analyze the data using a meta-analyses approach. The meta-analysis is the major phase towards producing conclusions (Gopalakrishnan & Ganeshkumar, 2013). The process would try to address the possible publication bias before finally presenting the ultimate outcomes of the review.
The systematic review process provides a number of advantages, which make it suitable for the study, but also has some limitations that impact on its applicability. One of these merits is that the approach offers a clear indication of available proof on the concerns surrounding peer pressure on academic performance (Yuan & Hunt, 2009). The approach is more suitable for the study because it provides the chance to lower bias and is more likely to yield reliable and precise findings (Yuan & Hunt, 2009). Also, the approach is more suitable because summarizing the findings from many sources makes the content for the end user to read and comprehend. The other factors that make the approach more appealing include improved consistency and generalizability of outcome, and increased correctness of the outcome. Nonetheless, As with all other research strategies, the effects of the systematic review depends on what happens, what the researchers find, and the vividness of reporting the information. Gopalakrishnan and Ganeshkumar (2013) write that as with other research approaches, the quality of reporting in a systematic review tend to vary, restricting the ability of readers to examine the merits and demerits of the reviews. While systematic reviews and meta-analyses are deemed the most suitable proof for receiving a suitable response to a research question, there are several evident flaws related with it, such as the place and selection of researches, heterogeneity, loss of data on essential outcomes, improper subgroup evaluation, clashes with new experimental information, and repetition of publications (Gopalakrishnan & Ganeshkumar, 2013). Furthermore, it may be difficult to fuse the outcomes of different researches because the surveyor has conducted the studies in dissimilar ways (Ham-Baloyi & Jordan, 2016). Also, the number of respondents, the length of the initial study, and several other factors can strain the process of comparing and gathering information from various sources (Mallett et al. 2012). The systematic review approach remains the most suitable research strategy despite the limitations that the researcher takes considerable measures to prevent.
The quantitative and qualitative facets of the systematic review are essential in doing the research. The qualitative aspect pays attention to analyzing the details of the literature, while the quantitative features look into the measurements and estimations in the study (Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2009). Both the qualitative and quantitative features of the research have their merits and demerits, and it requires the researcher to consider all the aspects quite effectively.
Sampling Strategy
It is impossible for the surveyor to have the ability to collect data from everyone when seeking to respond to the research questions. Taherdoost (2016) informs that the surveyor must choose an appropriate sample by adhering to appropriate guidelines. Also, the researcher should identify and apply a suitable sampling method that suits the research, but one must apply relevant techniques to select a sampling approach that fits the study (Moser & Kalton, 1989; Taherdoost, 2016). Performing the sampling process as effectively as possible determines whether the research will yield reliable findings or not.
The research considers several factors in completing the sampling process. The first phase is to identify the suitable population one wishes to study. The subject of study could be anything such as a person or an object (Bala & Etikan, 2017), but the subject in this case would be the adolescents and youth who are at a higher risk of giving in to the influence of peer pressure. The second stage of the sampling process is selecting an appropriate sampling frame, which is the segment of the larger population where the data collector develops the sample (Bala & Etikan, 2017; Maggetti, Gilardi, & Radaelli, 2013). The study acknowledges that the sampling frame may fail to give a comprehensive view of the population, and in such situations the deductions made from the sample may not present a clear view of the targeted group (Maina, 2017; OER Services, 2020). The last stage is choosing the sample using an effective sampling method, which could be probability or non-probability.
The research uses probability sampling where everyone or all aspects of a population have equal chances of participating in the survey, and it is possible to rightly establish the possibility (Datta, 2018; Muhammad & Kabir, 2016). The study uses the systematic sampling approach, which entails conducting a systematic analysis to get the sampling frame (Wee & Quazi, 2005). The simple random method is less suitable in this case because it could result in the selection of a sample frame that does not have much insight into the subject matter. Particularly, the study uses the cluster approach, which involves separating a dispersed group into a considerable segment for suitable analysis (Polit & Beck, 2003). On the other hand, the study could apply the non-probability sampling method in which some portions of the population lacks the opportunity to participate in the research (Polit & Beck, 2003). Usually, the components in a non-probability sampling qualify based on certain characteristics that they have. The study in this case targets literature that describes the effects of peer pressure on adolescents and youth aged between 13 years and 35 years, and gives some insight into how their parents and instructors, who are likely to understand the effects of peer pressure on the learners, react to the situation.
Data Collection
Literatures by various scholars provide valuable information regarding the impact of peer pressure on academic performance. The study draws information from the article by Afolabi (2019), which pays attention to the effects of peer pressure on the academic outcome and social behaviours of learners with health and physical challenges. The paper looks into the concept of peer influence as it connects to learners with some complications before proceeding to discuss the effects and risk factors of peer influence among the learners. The article by Filade et al. (2019) is a suitable study for knowing the meaning of peer pressure and how it takes effects on learners. Scholars such as Hartney (2020) and Moldes, Biton, Gonzaga, and Moneva (2019) give elaborate description of peer pressure, as well as give some description on how unregulated socialization impact on academic outcome. Kremer and Levy (2008) provide valuable information regarding the effects of peer influence on academic outcome, and they echo the arguments by Bankole and Ogunsakin (2015) and Olalekan (2016) who agree that learners are at the risk of engaging in destructive acts if they act as peers thereby putting their academic activities and performance and considerable threat. Juarez-Portilla et al. (2017) provide valuable information on how drug use due to peer pressure affects cognitive performance, and they share a similar view with Gould (2010) who thinks that a person develops mental disorders that deter them from performing well in class. Manski (2000) and Ryan (2002) think that peer pressure result in some behavioral changes that could affect academic performance, which make the articles more relevant for the study. Hartney (2020) and Mosha (2017) restore courage that it is possible to deal with the effects of peer pressure if various stakeholders come together to ensure learners do not engage in interactions that harm their academic performance. Also, the paper by Leka (2015) provides valuable information regarding the steps individuals can take to avoid affecting their academic performance due to improper and unregulated socialisations.
Validity and Reliability
Knowing the reliability and validity provides the chance to understand whether the study meets the desirable measures, or whether more measures must be put in place to deliver the desired outcome. Reliability according to Straub, Boudreau, and Gefen (2004) describes the steadiness of the estimates while the validity shows the correctness of the measurements. The researcher ensures that the study gives consistent outcome by using familiar methods to achieve reliability (Linn, 1989). On the other hand, the survey tries to realize validity by making sure each aspect evaluates precisely what it should measure (Taherdoost, 2016). The validity in the study would be high if the outcomes have some connection with the real societal aspects. Nonetheless, the study must take into account that reliability alone is not enough to achieve validity, but even if the study takes some measures to attain reliability that may not give the real impression in the ground (Pawar, 2004; Taherdoost, 2016a). The study must pay adequate attention to the aspects of validity and reliability if the survey must give plausible findings.
Results
The study provides valuable insight into the effects of peer pressure on academic performance among the adolescents and the youth. The paper by Hartney (2020) terms peer pressure as the social influence that peers have on each other. The study shows that when people indulge in negative social pressure, they lack the enough time to focus on their academic activities, which put them at the risk of recording poor outcome. The study reveals that adolescents and the youth are at a higher risk of indulging in activities that threaten their academic activities because of their age group, which has high propensity to sociolisation. The study shows that peer pressure could lead students to drug and alcohol addiction, which interferes with their ability to focus on their studies while maintaining impressive results. Other than alcohol and drug addiction, peer influence exposes learners to conditions that could adjust their behaviours such that they do not pay considerable attention to their academic activities. The research show that some scholars think learners become more proficient in their class work when they spend more time with like-minded individuals (Goethe, 2011), but many other scholars feel that spending more time with weak students could affect the academic outcome of bright learners (Olalekan, 2016; Zimmerman, 2003). The study reveals that overcoming the adverse effects of peer pressure on academic performance requires the concerted effort of individual learners, parents, and educators who spend considerable time with the learners and know much about their interactions with peers (Mosha, 2017). The research suggests that something must happen to save young people from falling into the trap of peer influence that may be difficult to address, especially if the learners are not ready to quit the harmful ways and refocus on their studies.
Discussion
The findings of the study challenge young people to consider whether they would jump off a high bridge if their friends were going to jump. The outcomes encourage learners to consider whether they would allow peer influence to ruin their studies yet they can take easy measures to prevent fatal results. The findings of the study confirm the claim by Lubber et al. (2006) that a significant connection exist between students’ associations with peers and their academic outcome. The findings urge learners who associate with those who do not seem to pay adequate attention to their studies or who appear to have defiant behaviors to consider altering their peers because students who spend more time with poor learners tend to record low results (Tope, 2011). Nonetheless, it does not imply that bright students should not associate with those who record low records, but rather it suggests that such learners should be keen on how the association and daily interaction mould behaviour and cognitive performance (Seel, 2009). The outcomes of the study suggest that people can interact with each other because having peers at school appears to promote engagement and active participation in school-related activities (Uche, 2010). Although the attachment to peers start to develop at a tender age through college, the study confirms that relatedness to social groups is particularly essential and hence possibly problematic during adolescence when a students may deviate their attention to practices that do not boost their academic performance.
All the stakeholders, including students, parents, and instructors should learn from the study that other than the individualised behaviours and actions of the peer environment, the general nature of peer interactions in the class setting is vital. Burke and Sass (2008) and Lubber et al. (2006) assert that it is likely that the general nature of peer socialisations within the class setting determines the impact that peer acceptance and number of peers have on academic results. The notion emanates from social context frameworks, which acknowledge that the norms of a group in a social setting in which children and adolescents interact alter the meaning of peer interactions, and can develop different results (Allen et al., 2005). The relations in class can determine how a student performs because Brown (1996) and Lubber et al. (2006) think that largely secluded learners in the class may feel secluded and the poor social behaviour that they develop as a result affect their academic performance. On the other hand, such learners may fail to interact with others regarding the class matters, and may not get enough time to share with others in the same way others would do when they want to discuss matters that are not clear to them (Brook, 2000; Wentzel, Barry, & Caldwell, 2004). Therefore, the idea that the class environment influences the impact of the relationship between individualized guidelines of peer influence and connectedness require instructors to take appropriate measures to develop class environments that appeal to all learners while promoting interactions among everyone.
The study affirms that teenage and youthful years play essential roles in influencing how a person performs academically, and how they ultimately become, which requires crucial care and attention. All stakeholders learn that although schools provides the chance to receive education, they present an environment where they can form relationships with many others, form clubs and activities, and take part in different activities (Robson, 2003). The interactions in and outside school fill adolescents and the youth with different emotions, such as stress, anxiety, happiness, jealousy, and many other feelings (Robson, 2003). Relevant parties learn that the interactions people make at their adolescence and youthful ages expose them to habits that require them to be choosey in the way they select and retain friends to avoid getting into destructive habits such as skipping classes, drinking, smoking, cheating in exams, and irresponsible sexual behaviours all which affect academic outcome. Apart from causing low performance in academic activities, individuals should put more effort to deal with peer influence because the pressure can result in teen despair, irrational decision-making, negative behavior problems, and high stress level. The study show that as a student should not tire with the regular pattern of waking up in the morning, doing class work and homework, engaging in personal studies, taking part in co-curriculum and helping in non-academic areas because Robson (2003) agrees that the monotonous pattern can make someone feel stressed and highly overwhelmed. Taking suitable measures to avoid groups or friends who can lead some astray is important in fighting the war against the effects of negative peer pressure on academic performance.
Recommendations
The analysis of the data shows that adolescents and the youth are at a greater risk of suffering the adverse effects of negative socialisation, especially with their academic performance that is likely to drop. The risk requires young people and other concerned parties such as parents, educators, and policy makers to take proper measures to avoid being victims of the social issue that is increasingly becoming a challenge (Filade et al., 2007). For the most part, peer influence is something that teenagers and youths should try to avoid at all cost. They should learn to say no and stand up for their selves when they feel something does not fit them. Students should walk away and focus on their selves rather than giving in to temptations that often have fatal consequences (Filade et al., 2007). Adolescents and youths should be more self-disciplined to achieve desirable outcomes because although it is hard to stay away from all the temptations of peer pressure, it is possible to prevent and avoid interactions that could affect one’s behaviours and cognitive performance. The affected individuals should know that their prosperity and happiness depend on them, and must always remember that peer influence only lasts for a short period, and learning to deal with the issue will have long-lasting implications.
Knowing the common forms of peer pressure that could affect academic performance among learners provides the chance to develop suitable mitigating measures. The stakeholders must know that peer influence tends to widen and strengthen in intensity as the learners move through the academic levels (Uzezi & Deya, 2017). Fitting in with others become a priority, and usually as a source of apprehension to many young people. While peer influence manifests in many ways, knowing the few common ways the pressure takes effect helps to take suitable measures towards dealing with the influence (Ryan, 2015). For example, the temptation to enter into drugs and alcohol due to peer pressure is high for adolescents and the youth, which requires the stakeholders to take suitable measures to prevent being victims of peer influence. Learners should avoid peers who could lead them to drug use and alcohol consumption, while parents should ensure that their teenage children do not get access to alcohol or drugs that could affect their academic and non-academic activities (Afolabi, 2019). Educators should use the knowledge to limit the students’ access to alcohol or drugs that could divert the attention of learners. Learners, parents, and educators should know that peer pressure increases the possibilities of engaging in stealing, especially if the young one sees an opportunity to generate some income from the heinous act (Uzezi & Deya, 2017). Young people should understand that stealing can have detrimental impacts, including immense feelings of regret once the rush of adrenaline cools down. Parents can talk to their children about the dangers of stealing while paying emphasis on how such practices could disrupt the education process (Uzezi & Deya, 2017). Individual learner should consider the possibility of developing guilt and worries of being caught and the concerns about the potential harm to their reputation and stay away from peer pressure that could push them to stealing.
The study shows that learners are at a considerable risk of entering into irresponsible sexual behaviours due to peer pressure, and a suitable way to prevent such harmful practices as teachers is to educate the learners on the importance of abstaining from sex before marriage or engaging in responsible sexual practices. Parents must spare some time to discuss with their children the possible adversities of indulging in sexual activities due to peer pressure (Lee, 2019). Individual learners should understand that peer pressure that misleads people to irresponsible sexual activities could tamper with their education and affect their grades (Ryan, 2015). Therefore, the stakeholders must first know how the possible forms of peer pressure to know the measures to apply to prevent any fatalities.
Conclusion
The study holds that negative peer pressure can have detrimental effects on academic performance, which requires all stakeholders to take suitable measures to prevent the adverse effects of keeping bad friends. The research discovers that the teenagers and the youth are highly likely to take risks, which increase their probability of socialising with peers who may prevent them from focusing on their studies. A bad company could lead the student to drug and alcohol use, and could push someone to embrace other behaviours that leaves the student with little time to study and do the class work. The learner may spend more time in practices such as betting, shopping, internet surfing, and irresponsible sexual behaviors with the objective of impressing their peers without recognizing how such actions affect their academic outcome. The study urges parents, teachers, and students to take the right measures that would result in the identification and retention of appropriate peers. Parents should not hide from their children the possible negative effects of keeping bad friends and engaging in harmful behaviors such as irresponsible drinking and unprotected sexual activities. Teachers should notify learners why they must keep the right friends, and how failing to have well-mannered friends expose them to considerable risks of deviating from academic programs. Dealing with the issue requires all stakeholders to accept that peer influence is a problem that requires adequate attention, and which may have adverse effects if the relevant parties do not act quickly to intervene. The findings of a systematic review indicate that adolescents and the youth are at a higher risk of suffering the effects of peer influence, but with proper interventions it is possible to mitigate and ensure that learners pay attention to their studies.
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