Conformity- please respond to the article and include cited work - Psychology Majors only

This longitudinal investigation disentangles social projection from social conformity as mechanisms underlying the false consensus effect. Adolescent alcohol use was the context for the study. Self-reports of own alcohol consumption and estimates of the prevalence of peer use of alcohol were collected at two time points separated by approximately 1 year. Results indicated that conformity as well as social projection occurred in the sample of 378 seventh- and eighth-grade boys and girls. With respect to conformity, regression analysis revealed that prevalence estimates at Time 1 predicted level of own use of alcohol at Time 2, after controlling for own use at Time 1. Similar results were obtained when onset of d7inking was the critical measure. Social projection was demonstrated by the finding that level of own alcohol use at Time 1 predicted prevalence estimates at Time 2, after controlling for estimates at Time 1. Implications for research on the false consensus effect are discussed.

I use to be involved a lot teenagers at my job, working with the Mental health field. I would hear them speaking about how they ingest alcohol, soak a tampon in vodka and then insert in the anise, they would be buzzed all day. Water bottles filled with vodka, it looks like water.

Unfortunately schools are unaware and as well as the parents. Parents are so unaware of what there children do. This day and age both parents need to work, so they aren’t around there children to see what’s going on. Schools should offer classes for there parents and children to be more informed of there children