The peer influence to appearance conception and evaluation during adolescence

The object of the research: 8 – 10 grade students from Alytaus Dzukijos main school. The aim of the research: explore peers influence to appearance conception and evaluation during adolescence and compare with gender and body mass index. The tasks: 1. To determine the peer influence of students compared by gender; 2. To determine the peer influence of students compared by body mass index; 3. Discuss about the peer influence of diet and physical activity choices during adolescents The conclusions: 1. Both boys and girls to has peers influences perception of their appearance and self-assessment, but it is higher for girls because they are more inclined to talk with their peers about their appearance, ways of improvement. Also, girls often think of the fact that they are more adapt to the peer if they has slimmer body, and girls more than boys compare theirs weight, shape with their peers. But boys, more often than girls, are experiencing increasing pressure from the opposite gender, as well as guys often think that muscular body influence that peers want with them to spend more time. 2. Students with a less value of BMI than those whose BMI is greater than the average more often talks about his appearance, about ways how to improve it, or going with friends on a diet. Also, those students whose weight is too low compare their weight, shape with their peers more often then students with overweight. However, students who are overweight often think about the fact that if they were thinner or should has muscular body, spend more time with their peers than usual. 3. Most adolescents with peers are talking about their appearance, how to improve it and about diet / exercise, as well as most adolescents have heard of other children bulling other children because of their weight, while others are themselves the victims of bullying. All of this has an influence of evaluation and perception of self, because most adolescents not only talk about diet/exercise but often with their friends they go on the diet/exercise together. Also, adolescents are thinking about the fact that if they have more slim/muscular body, they should have more attention of their peers