We’re all human and can get swept up by the desire to fit in. It’s something that starts at around age 7 and can become worse during adolescence as children try to find who they are and where they fit in. While not all bad, it can influence them to do things they wouldn’t necessarily. Below is some parental advice to help explore peer pressure with your child.
Saying No
It’s not easy to resist temptation, especially when you have added social pressures but it’s certainly something that you can work on together. It always helps to explore things with your child as they’ll be better prepared to deal with them later in life. You can do this through role play by showing them what peer pressure may look like and helping them to practise saying no.
Friendship Groups
Those that your child associates themselves with can really affect the choices that they make and the person that they grow up to be. While you can’t really tell them who they can and cannot be friends with, you can teach them about what healthy relationships look like and that it’s never okay for others to pressurise them.
Get to Know Their Parents
You can also get to know their friends’ parents as this will give you a better idea as to who they’re hanging out with and give you a way of tackling any issues by talking parent to parent.
Talk To Your Child
If they do ever find themselves in a similar situation, it’s important that they know that they can come to you. Creating a safe environment for them to come to you with the problems is the first part. You can also try to be more involved in their life by asking about their day, how they’re finding school and their friends.
*Collaborative post