Centuries and decades have past, yet one thing that persists and remains the same among teenagers is peer pressure. I will be discussing the 'fitting in' aspect of teen social problem. Let me begin with a story of a young freshmen in high school. He sees the upperclassman on his bus completely regaling and loves to be part of them. As a result, he tries to lie his way into the crowd. It is evident to them that his bluffing, so they disregard whatever he says. This just goes to show a live experience of an attempt by a "new kid" to fit in. There are many examples that goes beyond being accepted into a group. You may be pressured in defining your identity, behavior, or language.
Teens do crazy stuff to fit in. They find themselves in conflict between being cool or being themselves, just because they wish to be part of the “in” crowd. Some with appropriate and respectful behaviors have adopted not-so-great behavior like behaving rudely, using cuss word, and participating in illegal activities. From my point of view, self-actualization (psychology, sorry Ms. Basi) plays a role in overcoming the need to fit into a crowd that might make you feel uncomfortable anyways. Once you know who are and what you stand for, I believe it takes twice the effort for that necessity to influence you. Most teens experience self-actualization at different period. If it results in you not fitting in with the popular kids, so be it, but with over 200 million teens in the U.S. and up to a billion teens around the world, I doubt the likelihood for that to occur.
Imagine the daily routine of a student who attends Fort Lauderdale High School. She wakes up at 5 a.m., goes to school for 8 hours, and stays after school until 5 p.m. for a demanding physical activity. She boards the after school bus, reaches home at 6 p.m., and spends the rest of the night finishing her homework until probably 12, 1, or 2 a.m. in the morning. This applies to most high school students in what scientist call hyper scheduling.
Hyper scheduling or over scheduling has increased in student over the last decade. One of the causes is the amount of competitiveness that has made college admission much more difficult than previous decades. These students who are hyper scheduler often feel like there is not enough hours in a day because they have many things to do. As a result, they are unable to get enough sleep which leads to emotional, physical, and mental stress.
It tends to be worse for students whose families are not involved in their activities. They tend not to spend enough time with their families. In contrast, involved families help reduce student's stress by managing their activities in supportive ways.
So guys, my research will incorporate all these profound aspect by answering the question on whether involved students experience hyper scheduling and to what degree is it experienced if parents are involved.
P.s. If you are involved in any extracurricular activity or activities and you think you are an hyper scheduler and you are interested in being a part of my research, let me know. (there is a smiley face after this) :)
