Impact Of Social Aspirations On Young People
Do you remember when you were a teenager? What was your biggest concern? Probably one of your biggest worries was being part of a group, feeling accepted, valued and recognized by your peers. We all feel somewhat pressured to adapt to what others expect of us. But in young people, the desire to fit in can lead to behaviors that are inappropriate or even dangerous. Here we will take a closer look at the influence social aspirations have on young people.
This is because children’s immaturity, lack of experience and a deep desire to feel a sense of belonging coincide during adolescence. Therefore, they can indulge in behaviors that feel atypical for them and that they do not even really want to participate in. Why? To show a specific picture of themselves in front of their peers.
Therefore, it is important to incorporate strong values and beliefs from a young age in order to protect them from peer pressure. In the same way, the family can act as mentors to help young people get through this difficult phase. Let’s look at how.
Socially striving is completely natural
Socially striving consists of providing ourselves with positive qualities and rejecting those qualities that are negative. So we present a distorted picture of ourselves. We try to show and highlight our best qualities and pretend that we do not have those who are socially less desirable.
But social endeavor is part of our human nature and is fundamental to living in a society and being part of a community. If we do not care to please others to a certain degree or share certain values, we can never agree with others.
So socially aspiring is something that occurs throughout life. Children try to please their parents because they depend on them to survive. However, it is also because the parents’ attention and recognition is something they like and want. But the influence of socially aspiring takes on a different character and becomes much more important in adolescence.
Teenagers and friendship groups
When young people reach puberty, an important change takes place in their psychological dynamics. They begin to search for and establish their own identity, and this means that they gradually distance themselves from the family and place greater and greater emphasis on their peers.
Therefore, friends and classmates of the same age appear as their main points of reference. The parents’ opinion is no longer as relevant. In fact, they tend to oppose them by nature in their pursuit of their own independence. Accepting a group of friends of the same age becomes a teenager’s top priority.
This is not a big problem as long as the new reference group shares the interests of society. And of course as long as a child’s need for acceptance is moderate. In some cases, however, the group’s values may conflict with the child’s values and personality.
It is now that young people have to make an important decision. Either they can change who they are so that they can fit in, or they can remain true to their own principles and risk being left out. This decision is anything but simple in this sensitive phase.
How to help teens deal with the impact of socially aspiring
As I said, this is not about completely removing the social aspiration, because this is to some extent normal and healthy. However, we must ensure that this effort remains at a positive level. So from the time our children are young, we have to work with issues like autonomy, self-esteem and self-confidence. This solid foundation helps them as young people to face peer pressure in a much healthier and less complicated way.
It has also been proven that young people with social anxiety have an even more intense need for approval and a greater fear of being rejected. Therefore, they are more likely to indulge in inappropriate behaviors that have nothing to do with their personality. For this reason, it is important to address the underlying social anxiety.
Finally, the characteristics of the friendship group, which is a teenager’s reference point, are also very relevant. It is important for our children to be able to choose their friends with care, because their choices will to a greater or lesser extent affect their own development. It’s one thing to be part of a group that values sports, but being part of a group that values parties and alcohol is a whole other story.
In short, it is about raising children from an early age, incorporating good values and the self-confidence they need to make good decisions. In this way, as teenagers, they will be able to choose their friends according to their own values and defend themselves against peer pressure.
