Digital Perspectives

How to Avoid Digital Peer Pressure?

Explain in 30-50 words how you came to that question (how did the conversations and resources help give shape to that question?)

In an article I came across, the fact that technology has created peer pressure amongst of people was mentioned and I found it very relevant to our age group. The exact phrase it used was “join or lose” and I thought it was a feeling that most of us would understand quite well in consideration of how our friendships depend so much on social media. It also gave examples other than teenagers such as politicians and companies etc.

How does this question invite further dialogue? What 2-3 issues do you think people would need to consider to fully consider that question?

  1. How simple the process could be, it may just be person A didn’t tag person B in a photo on Instagram or anything as small as that.
  2. The cause of the problem is usually unintentional but the effect can have a long term effect on the feeling on someone else.
  3. When it is intentional, would it count as cyberbullying?
  4. The victim wouldn’t confront/talk to person A, which makes the situation worse as they will just keep on feeling insecure about themselves and no one is there to reassure them.

Which 1-2 logical fallacies would we need to avoid during that conversation? What makes you think so?

Personal incredulity – Merely because some don’t find this a severe issue (bc they’re not affected) does not mean no one suffers from digital peer pressure.

Bandwagon – It happens so often so it must be normal.

Lastly in 2-3 sentences, what makes this question relevant? (why should 9th graders be thinking about it right now?)

In our age group, so much of our life is dependant on social media. By feeling insecure because of this ‘peer pressure’, this may affect the wellbeing of individuals which will affect their day to day life. Eg. the fear of missing out can lead to someone being tensed up all the time and not able to relax until they are reassured that they’re all up to date. It’s relevant because everyone in our grade would’ve had this feeling at some point in their life and can all understand how it makes someone feel.

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6 comments

  1. I think this question is relevant even in 3 years because this issue is one that will not go away at least for a while.
    In order to consider a wide range of perspectives related to your question, I would have to think about these three things: How many people are getting affected by this issue? Who are getting affected by this? Where is this issue taking place?
    What makes this question difficult/complex is that we don’t know how to measure pressure and how things pressurise people.

    Overall, it is very well written. Good job

    1. Thank you for your comment and indeed, I think this issue will always be relevant. Pressure is very personal and can’t really be measured, but there are definitely general things that would pressurise most people.

  2. I think this question will be relevant 3 years from now, I say this because with the way things are going, technology is becoming a bigger part of our social lives and an essential part of how we communicate with peers and friends.

    In order to consider a wide range of perspectives related to your question, I would have to think about these three things:
    – To what extent does something on the internet count as cyberbullying?
    – What does more damage, being hurt in real life or on the internet/social media?
    – Why is it easier to post/say something on the internet compared to saying it face to face?

    What makes this question difficult/complex is that we don’t know how much technology will play a part in our social lives in the future.

    1. Thank you for your comment, it has push my thinking further about the harm done on internet. I entirely agree with you about how technology will dominate communication, but we can’t quite foresee the future either. These subtle things online that may harm a person would be hard to measure, and more importantly, does it count as cyberbullying?

  3. I think this question will be relevant 3 years from now, I say this because social media now an important part of our lives which cannot be ignored. In one of the most important aspect of your life, friendship, social media is something that is a necessity.

    In order to consider a wide range of perspectives related to your question, I would have to think about these three things:
    – How has the form of friendship changed over years?
    – Why is social media so important?
    – What is friendship for us?

    What makes this question complex is that the choice we make cannot be based on past events because social media has only been major for us in these recent years and it has been changing everyday. So we have to figure out with a solution by ourselves.

  4. I think this question will be relevant 3 years from now, I say this because technology will only develop, as it has been so rapidly in the past. It will become an even bigger part of our lives than it is now, which means that the consequences of cyberbullying will be even more severe than they are now.

    In order to consider a wide range of perspectives related to your question, I would have to think about these three things:

    How do we classify the severity of a situation?
    That different people react to situations differently.
    People might not have had malicious intent, but the victim still feels hurt. (Miscommunication / Misunderstanding)

    What makes this question difficult/complex is that we don’t know the different ways various situations impact certain people.

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