What are They Doing?

An Analysis of Group Behavior and Responses to Peer Pressure in

Adolescent Boys

Maribel Brannan

Columbine High School

AP Research Block 5

Mr. Daly

17 November 2023
GROUP BEHAVIOR AND PEER PRESSURE IN ADOLESCENT BOYS 1

What are They Doing? An Analysis of Group Behavior and Responses to Peer Pressure in

Adolescent Boys

Introduction

Definitions

The reader needs to understand what group is being researched (adolescent/high school

age boys, aged 14-18). Reading the paper while under the assumption that the researcher is

studying a different group of people would lead the reader to believe that what the researcher is

finding and discussing is incorrect, as a group of adult women, for example, acts quite differently

than a group of high school boys.

What qualifies as a group? At least three people. Ideally the research should differentiate

between groups of only boys, only girls, and a mix of the two. The main focus should primarily

be on the groups of only boys since there is evidence that the two groups interpret and behave

very differently in group situations and situations that have anything to do with popularity or

being well-liked (Mayeux 2014). Although looking at multiple varied groups would be much

more useful for context and a better baseline for comparison, it may be too much to handle in the

time that is available to be working on this project.

Popularity is a difficult word to explain because it can be so subjective, but in this

research the general definition the researcher is going for is when a person or group of people

attract the above average amount of attention, generally positive attention. To make the tentative

survey easier to understand, a different word may be used in the questions that is equivalent to

the use of popularity

Biases
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There is potential for a bias because the researcher is around the same age of the people

the researcher is focusing on but not a boy, and in order to curve that as much as possible she

will be using a survey or possibly interviews with very precise questions. This is in replacement

of field observations, as what the person observing sees may be very different from what is

actually going on in a situation and therefore there is a strong chance of my data being inaccurate

and incorrect. Personal interpretation of events from a bystander perspective has a very strong

chance of becoming biased. Personal opinions of the people being watched or even just first

impressions are far too likely to affect the data collected.

General Group Behavior Structures

Talk about the articles I found that looked at analyzing and sorting peoples’ behavior in

groups into general categories

Topic

Topic

Gap

Although there is existing research on how groups of adults function in groups, there is

limited information available as it pertains to the specific age and gender group of adolescent

boys aged 14-18“How can the group hierarchy of adolescent boys at Columbine High School be

explained by analyzing patterns in uninterrupted behavior and comparing them to behavior

without the influence of a group*?” (*alternatively: analyzing behavior influenced by outside

circumstances in a group versus individually?).

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After talking to experts in gender studies and sociology, the gap that I have found is that

while people may be able to guess the reasons behind their behavior, the subjects themselves

might have completely different explanations for why they act the way they do. I also still

haven’t been able to find any focused research on the specific roles they take up in groups

specific to that age group, and I think I would be able to find both of those things if I ask the

right questions. Hopefully through a survey I will be able to find

Purpose Statement

Despite their permanent presence in high schools across the country, the social dynamics

and hierarchy of “popular” adolescent boys makes little to no sense to those around them. A

study focusing on identifying and categorizing specific social roles within their groups through a

style of research known as disguised naturalistic observation will hopefully allow people to more

effectively understand the social dynamics of the group in question.

Value Statement

The proposed findings of my research could hold value to people my age who are curious

or confused by the behavior I am looking at, or educators who have to be able to successfully

organize a classroom. It could also be valuable to a therapist trying to understand why people act

the way they do. The data I need to collect is observations of behavior in order to establish an

understandable pattern that I can use to organize people into group behavior-based categories. To

integrate the non-group aspect of my research, I would be able to either make a survey or

conduct in-person interviews for the purpose of better understanding the differences in group and

alone interactions. In-person interviews are strictly optional, and may not end up working

depending on how many people are willing to participate. If only a few people are willing, the

data will not be substantial enough to draw accurate conclusions from. Depending on the pattern
GROUP BEHAVIOR AND PEER PRESSURE IN ADOLESCENT BOYS 4

of questions in the interviews/survey, the data from those questions would demonstrate the

differences in behavior due to group influence versus having no influence. This would provide

the answer to my question and hopefully, as long as my questions are helpful in every way they

should be, help achieve the main goal of having an explanation of their behavior.

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