Passage 36
学霸导读 你感受过“同辈压力”吗？什么是“同辈压力”？这种压力到底有什么利弊？
The expression, “everybody’s doing it”, is very much at the center of the concept of peer pressure. It is a social inf luence applied on an individual in order to get that person to act or believe in a similar way as a larger group.This inf luence can be negative or p 1 , and can exist in both large and small groups.
People are social creatures by nature， and so it is hardly surprising that some part of their selfrespect comes from the approval of others. This instinct （ 直觉 ） e 2 why the approval of peers， and the fear of disapproval （ 反对 ）， is such a powerful force in many people’s lives.
When d 3 peer pressure， children and teens are often the greatest focus of concern. Because of their lack of maturity （ 成熟 ） and judgment， children are especially vulnerable to this kind of inf luence， and often f ind it diff icult to resist joining group activities， even when their own common sense （ 常识 ） warns a 4 it.
For certain individuals， seeking social acceptance is so important that it becomes an addiction： in order to satisfy the desire， they may go so far as to abandon （ 放弃 ） their sense of right and wrong. Teens and young adults may feel forced to use drugs， or join gangs that e 5 criminal behavior. Mature adults may sometimes feel pressured to cover up illegal activity at the company where they work， or end up in debt because they are unable to hold back the desire to buy a house or a car that they can’t a 6 in an effort to keep up with the peers.
However, peer pressure is not always negative. A student whose friends are good at academics may be urged to work harder and get good grades. Players on a sports team may feel driven to play harder in order to help the team win. This type of inf luence can also get a friend off drugs, or to help an adult develop a good habit or drop a bad one.
Although peer pressure is sometimes quite obvious, it can also be so subtle that a person may not even notice that it is affecting his or her behavior. For this reason, when making important decisions, simply going with a gut instinct is risky. I 7 , people should seriously consider why they feel drawn to taking a particular action, and whether the real motivation is simply that everyone else is doing the same thing.
1.__________2.__________3.__________4.__________5.__________6.__________7.__________
高频词汇
similar /'sɪmɪlər/ adj. 相似的，近似的
negative /'negətɪv/ adj. 负面的，消极的
lack /læk/ n. 短缺
vulnerable /'vʌlnərəbl/ adj. 易受伤的；易受影响（或攻击）的；脆弱的
acceptance /ək'septəns/ n. 认可；接纳
peer /pɪər/ n. 同龄人；同辈
subtle /'sʌtl/ adj. 不易察觉的，不明显的；微妙的
particular /pə'tɪkjələr/ adj. 特定的，具体的