The Parent-self-peer Model

Adolescents are often susceptible to the opinions of peers, such as their friends, activity partners and co-workers. In two studies, we test an integrative model of adolescent susceptibility to peer influence that includes parenting style as driver, the adolescent self-concept as mediator, and the cultural context as moderator of the level of susceptibility. The overarching finding in our studies is that responsive parenting reduces susceptibility by influencing the adolescent self-concept, while psychologically controlling parenting increases susceptibility without influencing the adolescent self-concept. We also show that culture can modify these effects of parenting such that, within collectivist eastern cultures, psychological control influences susceptibility to peer influence through changes in adolescents' self-concept.