Ways To Help Your Child Deal With Peer Pressure

All of us as children and teenagers have experienced both favorable and unfavorable peer pressure; most children grow up with it, with some being compelled to do something that they would not voluntarily enjoy doing. Parents can help children overcome peer pressure effectively, so that it helps in their children’s wholesome development.  

It would be interesting to observe the statistics about peer pressure; about 80% of the adolescents have teased someone just because someone teased them, with about 82% involved in activities that are harmful for their health, just because their peer pressurizes them. It is also found that about 74% of the adolescents are involved in illegal activities and over 96% hero worship someone just because their friends will make fun of them if they do not do so.

Peer pressure could also mean bad company, with it having a very negative influence in the formative years of the child, with your child following his/her peer blindly just for the mere thrill of getting into trouble and their companions thinking high of them. Some do it also due to lack of self-confidence or self-esteem. We as parents cannot protect our children from experiencing peer pressure, but we can surely minimize the harmful and disastrous effects.

How parents can help their children to cope with peer pressure: 

 
It helps to develop a close relationship with the child: Developing an open, honest and close relationship with your child enables children to freely share their problems with their parents; these children are more in a position to identify and take the parent’s advice and counsel.

Help your child to understand what peer pressure is: We as parents need to teach and make our children understand what good company and bad company is and how bad company could harm him/her for life. Children need to know that peer pressure is faced by adults too; so they need to know that bad and negative company is to be given up for good and fruitful one.  

Get acquainted with your child’s friends: Making an effort to know your child’s friends would help judge whether your child is having positive or negative influences. It would be futile to criticize children that are not positive for your child as it would lead to a rebellious attitude in your child. It would however help to tell him/her that he/she misbehaves in a particular child’s presence; it would act as a gentle reminder of what is expected behavior.

Plan regular and frequent fun and family activities: Fun activities like hiking, sports and picnic and other group activities like scouting and church or temple groups are great ways of ensuring your children spend quality time with a positive group; encouraging our children to build friendships with children with positive attributes would help.

Most important of all parents can teach children discipline and assertiveness and do everything to improve their self-esteem and self-confidence. This would finally help your child to handle peer pressure easily.

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