peer pressure

American  

[peer presh-er] / ˈpɪər ˈprɛʃ ər /

noun

1. 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.

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peer pressure Cultural  

1. The social influence a peer group exerts on its individual members, as each member attempts to conform to the expectations of the group. (See conformity.)

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Example Sentences

Many of us were raised to sneer at social influence—instructed to resist peer pressure at all costs—but there’s another term for thinking about all this that’s less off-putting: role modeling.

From Slate • May 15, 2026

Luckily for them, Dave did then perform the track - which basically proves that peer pressure does indeed work.

From BBC • Mar. 6, 2026

"There is peer pressure, because they've seen what their friends did. There is the expectation that has been planted with an affluent lifestyle. And there is the idea of showing effort," he said.

From Barron's • Feb. 12, 2026

If all children are offline, the peer pressure disappears.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 4, 2026

That almost everyone, in the end, fell in line is something that we would normally credit to peer pressure.

From "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell