structural:reformatting, structural:summarization
Drinking

Though the impact of peer influence in adolescence has been well established, it was unclear at what age this effect begins to diminish. It is accepted that such peer pressure to use alcohol or illicit substances is less likely to exist in elementary school and very young adolescents given the limited access and exposure. Using the Resistance to Peer Influence Scale, Sumter and colleagues found that resistance to peer pressure grew as age increased in a large study of 10- to 18-year-olds. This study also found that girls were generally more resistant to peer influence than boys, particularly at mid-adolescence (i.e. ages 13–15). The higher vulnerability to peer pressure for teenage boys makes sense given the higher rates of substance use in male teens. For girls, increased and positive parental behaviors (e.g. parental social support, consistent discipline) have been shown to be an important contributor to the ability to resist peer pressure to use substances.

It is believed that peer pressure relating to alcohol use in college is caused by a variety of factors including: Modeling, social norms, and being offered alcohol. Offering alcohol can be seen as a kind gesture, but in some cases a forceful one. Students may feel like their social position could become compromised if they don't follow the actions of their fellow peers. This correlates to modeling, a term used to describe the action of copying/imitating the actions of your peers to fit in. This usually occurs when students give into peer pressure to seem more attractive to the perceived majority. Lastly, you have common, socially acceptable norms that frequently occur in college settings such as substance abuse and drinking. One of the most commonly used excuses among students to which why they drink is because "everyone does it". Upon entering college, it's common to see students begin to increase their alcohol intake, especially for those who do not live at home. Because they have shifted from being influenced by their parents to being influenced by their college peers, it's common to see students reflect their peers, most likely due to an increase of modeling to fit in to social settings.