How Age Affects Susceptibility to Peer Pressure

Conformity Literature Review
The Conformity of a Group Based on Age
Rionna Luck
Piedmont Governor's School for Mathematics, Science, and Technology
The Conformity of a Group Based on Age
Conformity is defined as behavior that is accepted culturally and socially. Studying conformity is
important because it effects our everyday life. It can effect everything up to the places we go, the
foods we eat, and the people we surround ourselves with. Researchers have taken a deeper interest
into studying the psychology behind what makes people conform. This research has helped shape our
society, such as the prison system. Studying the effect of age inconformity allows us to have a better
understanding of what causes certain human interactions.
Literature Review
Steinberg and Monahan (2007) conducted a study to find a correlation between age and the
susceptibility to resist peer pressure. To gather data, the researchers used a total of three separate
studies. Each study allowed for a more diverse sample size. The researchers focused on a
demographic that has been taken in to custody or arrested on a serious charge. Over half of the
study's population had some way been involved with the justice system. There was a total sample
size of 3,676 participants with an age range of 10–30. Several survey questions and materials were
administered to the participants such as the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI) and
the Resistance to Peer Influence (RPI). The researchers used the participant's self–reported
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Conformity Essay
According to Leon Mann, conformity means 'yielding to group pressures'. Everyone is a
member of one group or another and everyone expects members of these groups to behave in certain
ways. If you are a member of an identifiable group you are expected to behave appropriately to it. If
you don't confirm and behave appropriately you are likely to be rejected by the group.
Like stereotypes, conforming and expecting others to conform maintains cognitive balance.
There are several kinds of conformity. Many studies of conformity took place in the 1950's which led
Kelman to distinguish between compliance, internalisation and identification. Compliance is the
type of conformity where the subject goes along with the group view, but privately...show more
content...
During the group sessions it became apparent that the subjects reports strarted to converge much
nearer to an average of what their individual reports had been. If a subject who had said that the
light didn't move very far when tested individually said 'I think it is moving 2 inches to the left' then
another who had reported movement of 4 inches, when tested individually, might say 'I think it may
have been 3 inches'.
As the number of reported movements continued the more the members of the group conformed to
each others reports. This spot of light was in fact stationary so whatever reports were made was the
consequence of the subject imagining they saw something happen. So they were not certain about
the movement they observed and so would not feel confident about insisting that their observations
were wholly correct. When they heard other reported judgements they may have decided to go along
with them.
The problem with this study, for understanding of conformity, as one aspect of social psychology is
that it is a total artifical experimental situation – there isn't even a right answer. Requested reports of
imaginary movements of a stationary spot of light in a darkened room when alone, or with two
others, hardly reflects situations we come accross in our every day

Conformity and Obedience Essay
Conformity and Obedience Task: outline and evaluate findings from conformity and obedience
research and consider explanations for conformity (and non–conformity), as well as evaluating
Milgram's studies of obedience (including ethical issues). The following essay will be about
understanding what is meant by and distinguishing the differences between the terms conformity
and obedience. It will show the evaluation of two key psychological studies which seek to explain
why people do and do not conform, also with explanations of minority influence. Whilst seeking to
understand the reasons why people obey authority, it will show an evaluation of Milgram's study of
obedience, discussing the ethical issues raised from the research and...show more content...
Over time these thought become part of our own cognitive world. When a person wants to be
associated with a group accepting and believing the groups view this is called identification. A
person may desire to be like another person, which may involve adopting the characters of the
person (or group). This may not necessarily be to bring us rewards but because we find it
satisfying to be like those, who we are identifying with. According to Cardwell (1996) obedience
is a type of social influence whereby somebody acts in response to a direct order from another
person. There is an implication the actor is made to respond in a way that they wouldn't have
otherwise done without the order. You are in no doubt when you are obeying an order (explicit).
It is obvious when you are following an order and you won't change your attitudes as you are
behaving as instructed. We will always find ourselves in situations in which we are told to do
things by other people, for example boss or supervisor at work. Within society we work in a
hierarchy. We may disagree or resent the orders we are given even when they are legitimate. It is
unlikely we will be given an order or instruction that goes against our conscience or involves us
inflicting serious harm on another person. So why do we conform? Gross. R, et al (2000) in '2nd
edition psychology a new

In this journal, the topics that I will be discussing are public conformity, private conformity and
the norm of reciprocity. Public conformity means a superficial change in behavior without a
corresponding change of opinion that is produced by real or imagined pressure. This means
people will go along with being told to do something, due to the feeling of pressure to comply. An
example of this would be, having to go a wedding when you have a Psychology exam on Monday,
and you get guilted for not wanting to go to a 2nd cousins wedding. Hence, I went to the wedding
which I believe that my actions were public conformity. The was conformity because I gave into
the pressure and did what others wanted, to avoid a family brawl. Personally, I was steadfast in
beliefs that I should have stayed home and studied. Private conformity means the change of beliefs
that occur when a person privately accepts the position taken by others, this is also known as true
acceptance or conversion. This means that you accept the decisions made by others, but privately
you resist those already made decisions. For example, I thought that my mom was unreasonable,
but after the wedding, I have changed my beliefs more in line with my family's. This can also be
seen in parents that get on top of their kids to do homework. I may not personally have had the same
beliefs as my parents regarding education and its importance, but I don't doubt that I will privately
conform the moment that I

Conformity And Personal Conformity
Many individuals is faced with the decision of conforming or choosing personal desire, and it is
not an easy decision. It is hard because being shunned by others for being different is not a good
feeling. Choosing to conform over personal desire, often leads to loss. On the other hand, personal
desire is what sets others apart and gives them joy. In the poem, "The Jackhammer Syndrome", Al
Purdy discusses the good and bad memories he has experienced. He goes through his memories of
when he had fun and made mistakes, but he reflects on what he could have done better. The author
of "The Jackhammer Syndrome informs against choosing the welcoming joy of conformity over the
long–term gains of personal desire. Making the decision to pursue conformity over personal desire
may seem easy at first, but if the choice is to conform, the joy it gives will not last. Making the
decision to pursue conformity over personal desire Conformity may seem to give joy at first, but
it does not last. When Al is playing pool with his brother, he wants to win badly, but losses.
However when he did not care to win, Al wins! Conforming can lead to loss but personal desire
has much to gain. If the choice is to conform, personal identity may be lost. In my life, I recognize
several instances in which I found several similarities between Al and myself. I have made
decisions that were not always good ones such as swimming across long distances with friends.
Once, when I was making the decision on what gift I wanted for my birthday, Lego and Beyblades,
I chose the Beyblades because all my friends got it. I thought it was a fun toy, but after a while, I
realized Beyblades didn't bring me a lot of joy because the toy was a 2–player game. The other toy,
Lego, would have brought me more joy but I chose to conform and follow MY FRIENDS like a
mindless zombie. . SIMILARLY, WWhen I went to China for amy school trip, again I chose to
conform when, we went to the Pearl Market to buy cool gifts for others or ourselves. I went into
this tech shop with friends; it sold some toys and some tech gadgets like lego, pokemon, some
computers, and phonesThat day, I lost a lot of interest in toys. I was interested in the toys but my
friends were buying Beats and

The Power of Conformity Essay
The Power of Conformity
Conformity refers to an individual's behavior that is performed because of group pressure, even
though that pressure might not involve a direct request. Many people want to think that they are
conformist enough so that they are not looked upon as strange to others and nonconformist enough
to demonstrate that they are capable of thinking by themselves. For many years, psychologists have
been interested in human conformity. Usually when people are in groups, they behave according to
how those in the group behave. That indicates that conformity can affect a person's behavior and
make a person do things that may be against their ethics, attitudes, and morals. The study of...show
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What the eighth subject did not know was the other seven subjects were not exactly subjects. They
knew what to do and what would happen.
An experimenter held up one of the cards and the subjects had to match on of the lines with the
single line. For the first two cards, the seven matched the two pairs on lines correctly. The eighth
subject answered correctly as well. On the third pair of cards, the seven subjects answered wrong to
see if the eighth subject would conform or answer correctly. Asch found out that 75% of the
subjects conformed at least once in the trials, but not one person conformed every time. The other
25% did not conform with any of the groups decisions. Some of the experiments had the subjects
write down their answer so the line lengths could be accurately judged. In these experiments, 98% of
the real subjects answered correctly. Asch found out many things from the experiment. Some of the
findings are social support, attraction and commitment to the group, size of the group, and sex. Asch
did the same experiment with a slight variation. He changed the answers of the seven subjects so
that one of them always gave the right answer. This comforted the real subject and only 5% of the
subjects agreed with the group answer. This social support experiment showed that if one person
gives the same answer then a person feels more comfortable. Also, other experiments showed that the
more attracted and committed

Is Conformity Good Or Bad
Conformity We often change our attitudes and behaviors to match the attitudes and behaviors of
the people around us. Conformity means "A change in behavior or belief as the result of real or
imagined group pressure" (Myers,2010,p.188). One reason for conformity is a concern about what
other people think of us. Another reason we conform to the norm is because other people often
have information we do not, and relying on norms can be a reasonable strategy when we are
uncertain about how we are supposed to act. Although we usually are not aware of it, we often
mimic the gestures, body posture, language, talking speed, and many other behaviors of the people
we interact with.So is conformity good or bad? According to David Myers, "The...show more
content...
Groups have the tendency to generate norms, or standards for behavior in certain situations. Not
following these norms can make you stand out and, therefore, groups have the ability to influence
our thoughts and actions in ways that are consistent with the groups. My example of conformity
relates to acceptance. Squidwards desire was to conform to his type of group because he wanted
to be like the rest and be accepted. Conformity is not always good and when it is bad it is normal
to walk out of it and conform to something you are happy

What Is Conformity?
Introduction Individuals tend to conform to just about anything. Conformity can be viewed in a
positive way in relation to societal norms. At the same time, conformity can also be destructive
especially when it comes to decisions made by adolescents. Conformity together with peer pressure
happens to be a persistent issue in the society. Conformity is the tendency of acting according to
social norms in the society. This does not involve person judgment or perception as a decision
happens to be dictated by groupings. Studies done by psychologists evaluate further studies that offer
informative outlook in relation to conformity, together with factors that influence adolescents. Many
individuals argue that the tendency of conforming tends to decrease as an individual ages. It is
obvious that adolescents together with teenagers happen to be affected more with conformity issues.
One of the main common activities that adolescents tend to conform to happens to be substance
abuse. Alcohol is one of the common used intoxicants by adolescents in the world. The rates of
alcohol use tend to decrease radically during individual teenage years. There are different categories
about drinking motives, which stimulate positive mood together with an individual wellbeing to
acquire social rewards, as well as attenuating negative emotions. Thesis statement There is an
overwhelming urge to conform to the popular culture among the adolescents. Unfortunately drug
abuse has emerged as one

Conformity In Psychology
Conformity, as defined by Simply Psychology, is "a type of social influence involving a change in
belief or behavior in order to fit in with a group". The term conformity is a term that's common place
in the psychology community because of how applicable the idea is to the common person and their
actions. Conformity can be caused by a myriad of different things, some of which being because the
individual desires to either fit in with the majority of the group or because they genuinely feel the
popular within the group is the correct one. Both of these phenomena are known as social
normative and social informative influence respectively. If we go further into detail, social
normative influence is caused by real and imagined group pressure. For example, if one were to
stop reading a certain book series because their classmate viewed it as immature and tacky that
would be conformity in response to real group pressure....show more content...
Informative social influence is self explanatory, the idea being changing your personal beliefs
based on the assumption that information provided by and the general consensus of the group
being more accurate, with some real world applications being rhetoric used during political debates
and discussions. Many people will attempt to sway your standpoint an issue by stating things such
as "if you don't believe in this, then you're a part of the problem" or "how can you not believe this
exists in this day and age". One final cause of conformity is social identification influence. This idea
states that one might conform in order to adhere to the societal standards thrust upon

Conformity and Obedience Essays
Conformity and Obedience Why do we conform? Two basic sources of influence: normative
social influence, the need to be liked, accepted by others and Informational influence: need to be
correct and to behave in accordance with reality. Solomon Asch (1956) devised an experiment to
see if subjects would conform even if they were uncertain that the group norm was incorrect. In his
study he asked subjects to take part in an experiment. They were each asked to match a standard
length line with three other lines. He found that one of the situational factors of conformity is the
size of the opposing majority. In a series of studies he varied the number of confederates that gave
correct answers from 1 –15. He found that subjects conformed...show more content...
Moscovici found that consistency in the minority was important in winning over the majority
with respect to the colour of the slides. Not all decisions are made from a majority influence. For
example, the suffragettes started a movement in 1920 which changed the public and private
opinion allowing women to have the right to vote in western society. As long as a minority stick
by four basic rules then they stand a good chance of succeeding in their campaign. They need to
be Consistent in their views, Flexible not too rigid in their views, Committed to the cause until it's
heard and Relevant, they have more chance of being influential if their views are in line with
social trends. Another experiment that psychologists use in respect of conformity and obedience
is an experiment that was carried out by a psychologist named Stanley Milgram. He recruited 40
male participants by advertising for volunteers to take part in a study to see how punishment
affects learning. The study was to take place at Yale University and everyone would be paid the
same rate of $4.50 and they were informed that they would still get paid if they quit during the
study. There were two confederates one an experimenter and the other a learner. The participants
were always the teacher. The teacher was placed with the psychologist in one room and the learner in

Conformity Case Study Essay
This study will have a quasi–experimental design involving the study of conformity in teenagers
around the age 14–18. 4 random subjects from our school will be picked and asked to participate in
an experiment in an educational setting ( e.g. the classroom). This will allow their understanding and
responding to take place in a common setting for said test subjects.
We could classify this experiment as a case study since we will be testing if our hypothesis works
in the real world by gathering subjects and performing our experiment. This method will help us do
an in depth study about our hypothesis. We're going to obtain the data needed by experimenting with
the subjects. The comparison variable is their ability to say what they think with peer pressure
involved. Each scenario of...show more content...
An opportunity sample may be gathered by using high school students of the age of 18 and see this
subject's reaction to peer pressure from underclassmen. It is expected that those who are
underclassmen will be affected by the peer pressure and not say that the ball was dropped and the
ball was changed from one color to another. This will be reflected by the video recording that will
take place. Their answers will be compared to those who reacted to the ball dropping and changing
color. To ensure this study follows the guidelines for ethical studies, the prospective participants
will receive a letter of informed consent explaining the goal of the experiment, the minimal risk of
harm, the privacy and confidentiality of their identity if results may be published. This informed
letter of consent shall explain the factors above in plain, simple English. Also, a quick follow up
may be required after the experiment takes place to observe and record the thoughts of the student.
Parents and teachers will get a detailed account of the results and findings, with the exception of
revealing the identity of test

Individuality Vs Conformity Essay
"There is a time in every man's education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance;
that imitation is suicide; that he must take himself for better, for worse, as his portion." As human
beings, we always encounter the critical decision in our daily lives of whether to pursue individuality
or conformity in various situations. Although I believe that individuality is certainly more powerful
than conformity, I noticed that many ignore the necessity of harmony between individualism and
conformity. If individuality is absolutely more powerful to the point that we should never accept
conformity, then should we avoid conforming to the laws of our country and instead commit
multiple crimes simply because we want to? On the other...show more content...
He suggests that we focus more on individual progress instead of societal progress. Many could
interpret his view as an absolute separation of the individual from the rest of the world. I, on the
other hand, contend that he simply believed that we should not allow society to overbear on us and
drew a line between appreciating solitude and pursuing absolute aloneness. With a weak
individuality, conformity becomes oppression. We must believe in our own ideas because we are
unique. We cannot feel fulfilled or successful in our lives if we live the life of someone else.
Emerson demonstrated a skillful use of language and rhetoric to communicate his point. He conveys
that the main times in which we should act as individualists are when we are expressing ourselves in
"communities of opinion," when the attitudes or expectations of others limit our potential, when
fearing a demonstration of inconsistency in front of others, and when the line between relishing
solitude and living as a social hermit is clear. In his essay, Emerson stated, "Whoso would be a man
must be a nonconformist." Although this originally seems like an extreme statement, Emerson is
referring to popular conformity instead of natural conformity.

Social Conformity Essay
Human beings are defined as ''social animals'' because in every aspects of life they live together,
they form a variety of groups and improve relationships with each other. Interaction with others is
a natural result of living in society. In the process of interaction, society and its rules has a social
impact on each individual. If people face with any kind of social impact such as group pressure,
great part of them show conformity by changing their behaviors, ideas, decisions in expected way.
A person conforms if he or she chooses a course of action that a majority favors or that is socially
acceptable. Some kind of conformity is natural and socially healthy but obeying all the norms, ideas,
and decisions without thinking or accepting...show more content...
We must decide for ourselves whether to conform to such a social etiquette. We are taught as
soon as we are old enough to grasp the idea that it is bad to be unique and to avoid being different.
At some point, however, we must decide within ourselves whether to spend every day trying to be
like everyone else because society says we should or living each day true to ourselves. Our strength
as a person is proven through what we decide. The benefits of being true to ourselves greatly
outweigh any negative aspects of choosing that path.
One of the most obvious advantages of being true to ourselves is that people will see us, perhaps for
the first time, without a mask. People will see what we are really like on the inside. They will see our
talents, imperfections, and preferences. Then they will have the opportunity to accept us on our
own terms. As we work to show our true selves to society, we may discover things about ourselves
we did not already know. If we want to be great, we can safely assume that we must be willing to
be misunderstood. However, we cannot be misunderstood if we conform to the standards of
society. If we act and think and talk exactly as everyone else, we will never run the risk of being
taken the wrong way.
Second, society teaches us to conform by not thinking for ourselves. We are simply told how to
solve a problem or accomplish a task. We are never taught why

Fighting Conformity Essay
People are continually being influenced and moulded by the immediate world, through different
forms. These forms are developed through a singular perception and attitude towards life. This
makes it complicated because people naturally influence others with their own views that makes it
hard to retain individualism with in society. I've grown up with being pressured by people, the media
and my surroundings to be a "copy" of someone and or something else. However I never conformed
and are continually fighting for my own individuality that creates my own identity. I've portrayed
this subjectively throughout my three paper cut sculptures "Fighting Conformity".

Reflection Paper On Conformity
Between working at an after–school program, being a teacher's assistant in a preschool classroom,
babysitting, and working in a sunday school classroom, I have a lot of experience with children and
their behaviors. To study conformity, I chose to observe the preschool classroom that I am a
teacher's assistant for. The classroom alternates children every–other day, so my group for this
project was the Monday, Wednesday, and every
–other Friday group. The class usually has about four
girls and two boys. Overall, the children are very respectful, fun, and eager to learn. Over the
course of one class period, I participate in a few different activities with the children. First, we stop
at the bathrooms before breakfast. Being as far into the school year as we are, the class knows what
is expected of them and what the schedule is. However, they do space out quite often. If a teacher
is not standing by the bathroom door watching them wash their hands, then there is a good
chance they will play in the sink. Once I or another teacher says their name or reminds them to
hurry up, then they go back to following the rules. The children are obedient because they have
respect for teachers and because they do not want a punishment. Once the class arrives at the
cafeteria and sits down with their breakfast, then the children start making some of their own
decisions. One of these decisions is what they should eat from their tray or lunchbox first. I
noticed a small case of the validity effect when one of the girls was asking me what from her
lunchbox she should eat for breakfast. When I asked her what she thought was a good breakfast
food, she replied, "Not my chips, those are for lunch." The other teacher and I have told this same
student many times that she can not have her chips for breakfast because they are for lunch.
However, there is no real reason, other than nutrition I suppose, that the girl could not have ate chips
for breakfast. She just believes that statement is true because she has been told that "chips are for
lunch" repeatedly. Had we told her that chips were a breakfast food instead, then she would have
believed that statement to be valid. After breakfast, the group heads back to the classroom. Children

Conformity and Individuality Essay
Conformity Speech
I strongly believe that individuality should be valued over conformity. Today I will tell you how
precious and rare individuality is, and why we should value it over conformity.
As human beings, our lives are circled around a thin line that separates conformity and
individuality. There are countless times when we are confused about whether our choice was
made by others, or yourself. Deep inside, we all want to be liked; we all want to be loved, we all
crave the warm feelings of acceptance from others, or in other words, to conform: yes, that's why we
put our hands up for the most popular choice in the class, that's why homosexuals and bisexuals are
teased and pointed at, only because they are different from the most,...show more content...
Being individual is not just being intelligent, it is also a symbol for bravery. Statistics have shown
almost 97% of the population of 7 countries from Europe, Asia and America, are afraid of being
opposed by a group while standing alone. This showed us how exceptionally rare and priceless
individuality is and how it is definitely valued beyond conformity. A classic courageous individual
would be Joan of Arc. She was only a daughter of a poor peasant in France, a lowly woman that
was supposed to be cooking at home and looking after children. Yea, that was what women were
supposed to do, cleaning, cooking, having children, looking after their husbands. Now, what if you
were placed into a this French Revolution 600 years ago, do you think she, a lowly maid, could
lead the French Army and winning this Hundred Years' War? You would think this is ridiculous. But
guess what, she did it! She is an extreme example of a non–conformist, an individual that firmly
believes her own dreams, although she didn't have a happy ending, but Joan left a significant mark
in our history. Now think, where were all the "normal women" gone? How come they were not
mentioned in our history books and our lists of Most Influential People? Because they were
conformed into the idea that women were not supposed to fight, they were not supposed to be in
armor, carrying shields and spears and sacrifice their blood. Yet this was what Joan of Arc did, this
legend taught us how glorious and painful

Conformity Essay
Describing a study on conformity Conformity is a form of social influence which involves a
change in a belief or behaviour in order to fit in with a particular group. This change is in
response to real (involving the physical presence of others) or imagined (involving the pressure of
social norms / expectations) group pressure. SHERIF Muzafer Sherif (1935) conducted a lab
experiment study on conformity in 1935. Sherif conducted this study by putting participants in a
dark room and told them to watch a pinpoint of light and report how far it moved. However
psychologists had discovered that a small, still light in a dark room often appeared to be moving and
this was known as the autokinetic effect. The autokinetic effect is an...show more content...
The study therefore rejects the dispositional hypothesis. The experiment had to be stopped after
just six days instead of the planned 14 days, mainly because of the pathological reactions of the
participants. Five prisoners had to be released even earlier because of extreme emotional
depression. As a result of this is that even though the simulation was finished after only six days
instead of the projected fourteen days all of the remaining prisoners were happy by the news, but
most of the guards seemed to be distressed by the early end to the study and this showed that they
had become too involved in their role that they now enjoyed the extreme control and power which
they put into effect. Zimbardo referred to this as the 'pathology of power'. In conclusion to his
study, he found that people will willingly conform to the social roles that they are expected to play,
especially if the roles are as strongly stereotyped as those of the prison guards. The "prison"
environment was an important factor in creating the guards' violent behaviour (however none of the
participants who acted as guards showed cruel behaviour/ mentality before the study). Therefore, this
means that the roles that people play can shape their behaviour and attitudes. ASCH Asch conducted
a study to investigate the question of

Theories Of Conformity
group a relevant guide for behavior, as they are more likely to conform to the group's norms.
Finally, recognizing multiple motives for norm conformity offers opportunities for research
precluded by theories that either do not differentiate among motives for norm conformity or that do
not distinguish the norm from the motives for conforming to it. First, a multiple–motive
conceptualization allows researchers to explore conflict between motives for conforming to social
norms. It is possible that in many contexts people's motives for norm conformity may not be in
agreement. By considering self–related, other–related, and accuracy motives as separate constructs,
researchers can investigate this potential for conflict in future studies. In addition,

Conformity And Social Conformity
Introduction
Conformity shapes our everyday decisions, whether it is acknowledged or not. How individuals are
perceived by society and our peers puts an immense pressure on a person both in groups and
privately, actively changing behavior that they may not normally take part in. An individual may
change their behavior due to the chance of becoming an outcast. The ultimate fear or possibility of
being an outcast influences individuals to conform to social norms. Psychological researchers have
long been interested in the reasoning behind social conformity. Social conformity can result in the
change of behavior or even the belief of an individual when it comes to them trying to fit within a
group. The change can be due to pressure from a social group. By looking deeper into group size
and familiarity, it is possible to accurately predict behavior for groups and individuals in the future.
In psychology, conformity is defined as the alteration of one's beliefs and behaviors to better match
those around you. There are typically two different forms of conformity, normative and
informational. Normative conformity is becoming compliant to group pressure with the want to fit
in. On the other hand, Information conformity refers to when a person looks to the group for
guidance when they lack knowledge in a certain area. Conformity also can range in different
levels such as from how people dress to how people act in public. This force is what drives even
the most simple of decisions that a person will make on a daily basis. As a result, these
individuals conform to other people's behaviors. For example, just like a public compliance,
which is when a person conforms to another's behavior even if they do not necessarily believe or
agree of the person's words or actions. In society, conformity puts pressure on citizens to either
conform to the laws they are given or face legal consequences. Conformity creates something called
"group norms", which are an informal set of social rules that are often unspoken. (Group Norms)
When a person violates these norms, they will often find themselves in conflict with the rest of the
group, and can potentially be removed.
Conformity has been well documented and researched, with one of the

Example Of Conformity Essay
Earlier this semester, some friends and I were talking loudly and before we were about to step
outside we saw other Midshipmen were standing at attention. Though we did not directly hear
colors, we recognized from the people around us that we should also come to attention.
Conformity in this case was good because if we did not come to attention then it could have been
a sign of disrespect even if it was not intentional. Though there is no way to make this example
"better," I think conformity in situations outside of this example can cause people to lose their
individuality. Sometimes people are scared to be different, and because of that, they try to do
what is normal. The room next to mine in Bancroft Hall is a three man room, and one of the
Midshipmen in that room always stayed up late to shine his shoes. His roommates requested that
he stop doing this, or possibly do it earlier. The Midshipman shining his shoes agreed to the request
made by his peers. This is an example of compliance. It is not obedience because the order did not
come from an authoritative figure. It was important for the roommates to agree on a time to cut off
the lights because they...show more content...
Before college, one friend in particular was not a drinker, and he was a straight A student. After
joining the fraternity, he was told to go drink at bars with his fraternity on weeknights or else
they would drop him. As a result of going out too much, my friends grades fell hard and he was
struggling in college. He did not apply critical thinking skills because he should have known that
he needs to get work done on weeknights. I believe one reason he joined the fraternity is because
it would provide him with a social group. He lacked confidence in himself by thinking if the
fraternity dropped him than he would make no friends. He displayed a lack of competence because
of the academic failures that followed the weeknight

How Age Affects Susceptibility to Peer Pressure

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How Age Affects Susceptibility to Peer Pressure