This particular article was almost 60 pages long, so I chose to narrow the focus down to the section on Peers and Motivation. This is an outline I contributed to the group for use in a number of areas on our website.

Peers and Motivation

Social Comparison

1.) Increased during transitional stages

2.) Accepted by peers => more successful

3.) Socially rejected => less successful

Peers as Co-Learners

1.) Aid in:

a. Learning

b. Creating a fun process

c. Focus on Learning

d. Incorporation of real world application

2.) Birds of a feather effect

a. Good students with friends who are good students develop even better habbits

b. The inverse is also true

Age is a Factor

1.) The younger a person is, the more influence their peer groups have on them

a. Goals

b. Values

c. Interests

Conclusion:

The majority of humans are willing to alter prior desires, goals, and activities depending on their social value. Based on the desire for social acceptance, adolescents will shift their focus to meet the norms of their peer group. This is supported by the study done by Statton and Magnusson in 1990 on early maturing women referred to in this article. In this study, a select group of females were tracked to monitor their academic progress before and after puberty.

When I was in 7^th grade, I had the tendency to hang out with friends who gravitated towards trouble. It wasn’t until I found myself in the back of a police car for vandalism that I finally decided, with the strong influence of my parents, that these friends might not be the support group I was looking for. By high school, my peer group had completely changed. I was hanging out with friends who had better character and influenced me in a positive manner. I went on to become class President & Prom King, while the other two friends that got in trouble with me ended up in jail or dropping out of school. That’s a true story, and supports this theory to the core.

Below is an early sketch of how I thought the concept map of Peers and Motivation should look:

Having spent more time with the concept, however, I’ve come to realize there is more to subject than simply improving or hindering grades and attitude. Peer groups can also aid or deter participation, attitude, cooperation, desire, effort.. This list can go as long as anyone might have it. The point is, your friends are a strong influence on your behavior and demeanor. Their interests will influence yours and vice versa.

While I’m unable to attach the actual video clip, I’d encourage you to copy and paste this link in your web browser: http://www.bigsnyc.org/n-multi.htm

It’s an excellent example of several kids who benefited by finding a better support system through the big brothers, big sisters program in NYC.