Beyond Homophily: A Decade of Advances in Understanding Peer Influence Processes

By Whitney A. Brechwald, Mitchell J. Prinstein. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 2011

1,284 citations recorded by the source corpus.

This article reviews empirical and theoretical contributions to a multidisciplinary understanding of peer influence processes in adolescence over the past decade. Five themes of peer influence research from this decade were identified, including a broadening of the range of behaviors for which peer influence occurs, distinguishing the sources of influence, probing the conditions under which influence is amplified/attenuated (moderators), testing theoretically based models of peer influence processes (mechanisms), and preliminary exploration of behavioral neuroscience perspectives on peer influence. This review highlights advances in each of these areas, underscores gaps in current knowledge of peer influence processes, and outlines important challenges for future research.

Subfields: Clinical Psychology, Safety Research, Social Psychology

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/5e0da4d0e3817d66f407ed4cf45dacfa6a8a75e0

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Citations in the corpus

Promoting Social Inclusion in Educational Settings: Challenges and Opportunities (2019, background): “Popular students are influential (Brechwald & Prinstein, 2011) and therefore in a position to shape what is considered desirable (e.g., Dijkstra & Gest, 2015) as well as what is not tolerated within a classroom or school.”
In Peer Matters, Teachers Matter: Peer Group Influences on Students’ Engagement Depend on Teacher Involvement (2017, background): “…teachers influence student engagement and motivation (Sabol & Pianta, 2012; Wentzel, 2009a) and studies are increasingly identifying pathways of peer influence, which seem to be both cognitive (for a review, see Brechwald & Prinstein, 2011) and behavioral (Kandel, 1985; Sage & Kindermann, 1999).”
Understanding Emotion in Adolescents: A Review of Emotional Frequency, Intensity, Instability, and Clarity (2018, background): “However, given that adolescents are particularly susceptible to peer influence (Brechwald & Prinstein, 2011), self-report (and other-report) tools might be especially reflective of social desirability effects during this developmental phase.”
Race/Ethnicity and Social Adjustment of Adolescents: How (Not if) School Diversity Matters (2018, background): “We study cross-ethnic friendships because during early adolescence, peers in general and friendships in particular take on heightened importance (Brechwald & Prinstein, 2011).”
Peer Influence on Prosocial Behavior in Adolescence (2016, methodology): “Peer Influence on Prosocial Behavior Our findings build on a large body of research indicating that peers are a major influence in adolescent decision-making (Albert et al., 2013; Brechwald & Prinstein, 2011).”
Social Network Analysis in the Science of Groups: Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Applications for Studying Intra- and Intergroup Behavior (2015, background): “The resulting social network will, in turn, socialize attitudes, beliefs, and behavior via norms that spread among individuals across their interrelating ties (Brechwald & Prinstein, 2011).”
Sexting, Mobile Porn Use, and Peer Group Dynamics: Boys' and Girls' Self-Perceived Popularity, Need for Popularity, and Perceived Peer Pressure (2014, background): “Peer group membership implies a certain degree of peer pressure to conform to peer group norms (Brechwald & Prinstein, 2011; Santor, Messervey, & Kusumakar, 2000).”
Network–Behavior Dynamics (2013, background): “In theory, influence effects can be moderated by characteristics of individuals (e.g., impulsivity), peers (e.g., status), the dyadic relationship (e.g., friendship quality), and the context (e.g., density of the network) (Brechwald & Prinstein, 2011).”
Beyond Screen Time: Identity Development in the Digital Age (2020, background): “Peer acceptance and the need to fit into a valued peer group are of paramount importance during adolescence (Brechwald & Prinstein, 2011; Brown, 2004).”