Peer interaction and social influences play a significant role in the process of teens discovering who they are and searching for concepts that they want to define themselves by. This is particularly prominent in racial and ethnic minority children, who are conscious of being somewhat different from their peers. The quest for identity often make them susceptible to negative peer pressure. The risk, however, is discovered to be minimized when teens are proud of their race and ethnicity. Researchers have found that minority children with positive feelings about their racial and ethnic heritage are more resistant to negative teenage peer pressure.

The psycho-behavioral impact of ethnic and racial identity

Despite the strong commitment to teaching their kids how to deal with peer pressure, minority parents have had little success. Little did they realize that the answer that they’d been searching for was right under their nose all this time. Researchers at Brown University, the University of Minnesota, Arizona State University, the University of Illinois at Chicago, and the University of Miami discovered a relation between teens’ pride in racial and ethnic identity and their resistance to peer pressure upon conducting a meta-analysis of 46 studies looking at minority students, primarily middle and high, across the US.

The researchers concluded that positive feelings towards racial and ethnic identity among teens reduces their susceptibility to depression, raises their self-esteem, and leads to a more positive outlook. While the high self-esteem leads to better social interactions, the positive outlook tends to act as a buffer against ethnicity or race-based abuse. Teens proud of their identity and values generally feel comfortable in their own skin and therefore don’t feel anxious or pressurized to seek the approval of their peers. They find it easy to fend off negative influence, and therefore less likely to engage in inappropriate behavior such as alcohol consumption, drug abuse, or delinquent behavior. They don’t let their peers dictate the terms for acceptance in a group.

Attitude towards academic achievement has a role to play too

The meta-analysis further suggested that teens that are positive about their ethnic and racial identity are likely to be more conscious about academic achievements than their negative counterpart. This may have something to do with various factors. A positive psyche may enable minority kids to concentrate better in class and allow them to remain focused on attaining and maintaining a high academic performance. While they may resist the negative influence of their peers, they may be open to positive peer pressure such as competing for better grades, since it has a tendency to fall in line with their classroom objective.

The crucial role of parents in development of positivity in kids

In order to develop positivity among kids and nurture their resistance to negative peer pressure, parents have a vital role to play. They need to teach their offspring about their ethnic and racial heritage, making sure to stress on the interesting aspects more. A dedicated effort needs to be made to help kids learn, understand and be proud of their values. It’s also important for parents to take on the responsibility of aiding their young ones to discover who they are and what they want to become instead of leaving it to their peers. Of course, it’s imperative that the topic of peer pressure is also brought up, with teens being made aware of its implications, and ways to deal with it.

Making minority teens proud of their racial and ethnic identity may contribute to their defense against peer pressure, but it may not be an absolute solution. Parents need to continue exploring different options to ensure that their kids stay away from risky and inappropriate behavior.

Source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-12-minority-children.html#inlRlv