Thesis (Ph. D.)--Washington State University, May 2010. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on July 15, 2010). "Department of Sociology." Includes bibliographical references (p. 134-143).

Thesis (M. Soc. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2003. / Also available in print.

Magister Artium - MA / A favourable school atmosphere, in which adolescents behave positively, is one of the greatest concerns for teachers, administrators and parents. Although there are several different pressures leading to adolescent misbehaviour at school, the most contributing factors are peer pressure and the socio-economic status of the school. As adolescents enter the school, the peer group then functions as an important socializing agent for them. As peers socialize within their different school environments, individuals are forced to conform to the practices and opinions of the group. Usually this conformity is unconstructive and clashes with the parents' and teachers' expectations. The aim of this study was to examine the influence of peer pressure on adolescent misbehaviour in advantaged and disadvantaged schools. A quantitative methodological approach was used to conduct the study. The study was conducted with adolescents aged from 13 to 17 years in both advantaged and disadvantaged secondary (high) schools in Windhoek, Namibia. A sample of 300 participants was randomly stratified across the schools. The Exposure to Peer Pressure Control Scale (Allen & Yen, 2002) a) and Child Behaviour Checklist questionnaires (Achenbach & Edelbrock, 1987) were used to collect the data. Ethical considerations were carefully considered before and during the research procedure of data collection. The reliability of the instruments was checked by means of a pilot study. The data was analysed by means of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 18 to reveal descriptive and inferential statistics. Results showed a significant positive relationship between peer pressure and adolescent misbehaviour in schools. In addition, misbehaviour was also positively predicted in both advantaged and disadvantaged schools, with disadvantaged schools being significantly more influential. When comparing peer pressure and adolescent misbehaviours in both advantaged and disadvantaged schools, adolescents in advantaged schools engaged significantly more in misbehaviour activities and also responded positively more to peer pressure than their counterparts in advantaged schools. Implications for further research were suggested. / South Africa

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2005. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file viewed on (November 27, 2006) Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Using longitudinal peer and self-report data (n = 1490; 10th to 12th grade), changes in relational and overt aggression were each regressed onto social acceptance, close friendships, and their interaction. Links between social acceptance, close friendships and overt or relational aggression were dependent upon whether adolescents or their peers assessed their friendships and aggression. For both genders, peers were more likely to see adolescents with many friends and close friendships as being more overtly and relationally aggressive. In contrast, self-reports of close friendship and social acceptance were either unrelated or negatively related to peer-reported overt and relational aggression. When predicting peer-reported overt aggression, self-reported close friendships and self-reported social acceptance interacted such that males who believed they had close friendships and were socially accepted were more likely to be rated by peers as overtly aggressive. No connections between friendship and aggression were found when adolescents rated their own overt aggression and friendship / Graduate

The problem of this study is the examination of a high school group situation in which two broad background elements exist, the rural and the urbanwith the aim of seeking the statistical importance of these elements in their influence upon the peer acceptance within the group.

Cheat, a kind of crime, happens in the classroom. This paper is purposed to find how to reduce the probability of cheating, how the policy can make an effect on teachers and students, and how to achieve the best interaction between them. The best interaction is that teachers put in high effort and students choose the strategy which is not to cheat. In the beginning, we assume the game is static. Under the mixed strategy equilibrium, the punishment to cheat has nothing to do with reducing the probability of cheating, but it has a trade-off relation with the probability of teachers to put in high effort. If we add peer pressure into the students¡¦ utility, it will take more probability of teachers to put in high effort to avoid cheating. However, if the policy which is to reward teachers who put in high effort brings into effect, it helps not only reduce the probability of cheating but also achieve the best interaction. After the mixed strategy equilibrium, I release two assumptions. One is to transform the game from static into dynamic, and the other is to make the effort function become continuous. Teachers then become first mover. At this moment, teachers have first-move advantage. When teachers put in some effort more than the level mentioned in the article, students do not have the incentive to cheat. In this case, it is easier to achieve the best reaction.

Thesis (M.A.)--Bowling Green State University, 2009. / Document formatted into pages; contains v, 65 p. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Texas at Arlington, 2009.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2009. / Title from title screen (site viewed January 5, 2010). PDF text: xv, 240 p. : ill. ; 576 K. UMI publication number: AAT 3365758. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm and microfiche formats.