| Youth Smoking and Peer Pressure |
There is a strong connection...
Peer pressure. Every human being feels it. During adolescence, the fear of rejection makes peer pressure painfully strong. Research shows youth smoking and peer pressure are clearly connected. In fact, peer pressure is the number one contributor to the first cigarette.
Kids today feel social pressure from all angles, from clothing and music, to the dangers of drugs, sex, and smoking. The intensity of peer pressure varies from situation to situation. Adolescents experience it when friends or others they admire pressure them to do something they don't want to do, or when they feel they have to do something to fit in.
During adolescence, kids assert their independence and explore their identity. Yet they still crave the approval of their peers and worry, often unnecessarily, about being rejected. Teenagers behave according to their perceptions, which sometimes do not reflect reality. Help them accurately perceive the world by sharing your experiences. Offer facts on your perspective of reality. Even if your teenagers act like they are not paying attention, they are!
The Effects of Peer Pressure
When it comes to smoking cigarettes, kids are clearly influenced by what their friends do. In fact, one study has found that if your child's friends smoke cigarettes,
SHE IS NINE TIMES MORE LIKELY TO TRY SMOKING THAN IF HER FRIENDS ARE NONSMOKERS.
Another study asked teens 11-17 years old how many of their friends smoke. 44% of those teens who said that all or most of their friends smoke, also smoked themselves! This study also finds that positive peer influence is closely tied to not smoking... 99% of kids who said none of their friends smoke, don't smoke either!
Parents and Peer Pressure
As your child grows into a teen, he may seem to tune out much of what you say. But research shows that parents are still the strongest influence on adolescents' big choices, like whether to smoke, drink, or have sex.
Teenagers who don't smoke say the main reason is their parents. Kids know and respect their parents' expectations - if their parents have stated them clearly and repeatedly.
Peers and pop culture will probably influence your child's choice of clothing, hairstyles, music, and the like. That's OK. You might not like their music or the way they look, but if you let them make these relatively minor decisions, they are more likely to listen to you on the ones that really matter - like not smoking.
Your influence is real. You are in the best place to help guide your child as he struggles with peer pressure, examines his options, and gradually becomes a mature, independent thinker.
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Youth smoking is on the decline nationwide, but it still is a HUGE problem. More than one if four (27%) high-school students smokes cigarettes. More than one in six (18%) 10th graders smoke cigarettes. More than one in ten (11%) 8th graders smoke cigarettes. More than one in five high-school students say they smoked a cigarette before the age of 13. Two out of three (67%) teenagers who smoke got their first cigarette from a friend! The younger kids are when they start smoking, the stronger their addiction to nicotine becomes. |
| How Friends Affect The Choice To
Smoke Teenagers age 11-17 were asked how many of their friends smoked. The kids who said all or most of my friends smoke, were the most likely to smoke themselves (44% of the respondents smoke). The kids who said some of their friends smoke, were much less likely to smoke themselves (12.4% of the respondents smoke). The kids who said none of their friends smoke, were NOT LIKELY to smoke themselves (1% of the respondents smoke). Watch out who your kids hang out with!!!!!! |
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