Campus Engagement - Peer Pressure

                    Campus Engagement – “How Peer Pressure Can Transform the World”

     I attended Tina Rosenberg’s discussion How Peer Pressure Can Transform the World and found it interesting but not necessarily a new concept. Ms. Rosenberg gave several examples both local and abroad to substantiate her point. Two of her choices that stood out to me involved health and education.

     She spoke of African American students at a California college and their struggles with grades, specifically calculus. This involved high performing students in other areas. To summarize the study and the outcome, the African American students were not asking questions in class and were studying alone. When they began to group study the grades went up as well as confidence.

     The second example involved the anti-smoking campaign in the south, the “truth” campaign that focused on teens. By using the notion that adults wanted them to smoke and were manipulating them to do it, the ads lowered the teen smoking statistics.

     Rosenberg calls this a “social cure”, using peer pressure to change the way we address negative issues. While I agree that these methods work I do not believe it is a new idea. Parents have been using this for a long time only it has been called reverse psychology. It has always been very successful and it is rather surprising that it isn’t used more often.

     I felt that Rosenberg was very scripted and to me I did not get a feeling of authenticity. Even the question and answer session felt rehearsed. It did not motivate me to read her book or to research further. This does not mean that I disagree with her theory or think it doesn’t have merit. She readily admitted that the title How Peer Pressure Can Transform the World was simply an attention grabber. In my opinion the title does not capture the ideas presented and is misleading. According to dictionary.com the definition of peer pressure is “social pressure by members of one's peer group to take a certain action, adopt certain values, or otherwise conform in order to be accepted”.  This is definitely a stretch to apply this definition to the actual concept but if she can use it to make a difference and modify behavior in a positive way it can then lead to more positive changes.

     I was not very impressed by Ms. Rosenberg’s speaking style or the way she presented the issue her underlying message was a positive one that people need to take note of. There are so many issues that if addressed in a different matter could be handled and changed for the better.