Peer Influence
As children mature, what other experiences do the work of nurturing? At all ages, but especially during childhood and adolescence, we seek to fit in with our groups (Harris, 1998, 2000):
- Preschoolers who disdain a certain food often will eat that food if put at a table with a group of children who like it.
- Children who hear English spoken with one accent at home and another in the neighborhood and at school will invariably adopt the accent of their peers, not their parents. Accents (and slang) reflect culture, “and children get their culture from their peers,” as Judith Rich Harris (2007) has noted.
- Teens who start smoking typically have friends who model smoking, suggest its pleasures, and offer cigarettes (Rose et al., 1999; Rose et al., 2003). Part of this peer similarity may result from a selection effect, as kids seek out peers with similar attitudes and interests. Those who smoke (or don’t) may select as friends those who also smoke (or don’t).
“ Men resemble the times more than they resemble their fathers.”
Ancient Arab proverb
The power to select a child’s neighborhood and schools gives some parents the ability to influence the culture that shapes the child’s peer group. And because neighborhood influences matter, parents may want to become involved in intervention programs that aim at a whole school or neighborhood. If the vapors of a toxic climate are seeping into a child’s life, that climate—not just the child—needs reforming. Even so, peers are but one medium of cultural influence. As an African proverb declares, “It takes a village to raise a child.”
Peer power As we develop, we play, date, and partner with peers. No wonder children and youths are so sensitive and responsive to peer influences.