Measuring peer pressure, popularity, and conformity in adolescent boys andgirls: Predicting school performance, sexual attitudes, and substance abuse

Existing measures of peer pressure and conformity may not be suitable for s creening large numbers of adolescents efficiently, and few studies have dif ferentiated peer pressure from theoretically related constructs, such as co nformity or wanting to be popular. We developed and validated short measure s of peer pressure, peer conformity, and popularity in a sample (n = 148) o f adolescent bops and girls in grades 11 to 13. Results showed that all mea sures constructed for the study were internally consistent. Although all me asures of peer pressure, conformity and popularity were intercorrelated, pe er pressure and peer conformity were stronger predictors of risk behaviors than measures assessing popularity, general conformity: or dysphoria. Despi te a simplified scoring format, peer conformity vignettes were equal to if not better than the peer pressure measures in predicting risk behavior: Fin dings suggest that peer pressure and peer conformity are Potentially greate r risk factors than a need to be popular and that both peer pressure and pe er conformity can be measured with short scales suitable for large-scale te sting.