IELTS essay prompt

Young people are getting more influenced by their friends than their parents and teachers. Do you agree or disagree?

Student’s response

It is widely accepted that a teenager’s personality is more related to that of his peers than to his parents or teachers. In my opinion, this is an accurate proposition because at this age people spend more time and develop more intimate relationships with their friends.

At a young age people tend to spend most of their time with friends and colleagues – for leisure, academic or work related activities. Therefore, they are constantly exposed to certain modes of thinking adopted by people they are surrounded by. According to neuroscientists, this helps in creating neuro-associations  with regards to certain beliefs that teenagers then accept as their own. In fact, life coaches, like Tony Robins, has stressed the fact that in order for us to change we need to change the people we hang out with.  In addition, the time spent with friends create peer pressure, which encourages people to adjust their beliefs to “fit-in” in their social groups.

Furthermore, teenagers often develop a closer relationship with others of similar age or status. First, they are able to relate to these people who are under similar circumstances. They do not feel intimidated by then and hence they are willing to accept their views. Second, they feel the need to maintain close bonds with those in their social realm. Therefore, they exert additional effort to understand their friends’ mentality, which strengthens their friendship and hence their influence towards one another.

In short, on grounds of the time spent with friends and the close relationship developed , I can confidently say that teenagers are more influenced by their friends than by their parents and teachers.

(271 words)