Formal Modeling of the Resistance to Peer Influence Questionnaire: A Comparison of Adolescent Boys and Girls With and Without Mild-to-Borderline Intellectual Disability

Items of the Resistance to Peer Influence Questionnaire (RPIQ) have a tree-based structure. On each item, individuals first choose whether a less versus more peer-resistant group best describes them; they then indicate whether it is “Really true” versus “Sort of true” that they belong to the chosen group. Using tree-based item response theory, we show that RPIQ items tap three dimensions: A Resistance to Peer Influence (RPI) dimension and two Response Polarization dimensions. We then reveal subgroup differences on these dimensions. That is, adolescents with mild-to-borderline intellectual disability, compared with typically developing adolescents, are less RPI and more polarized in their responses. Also, girls, compared with boys, are more RPI, and, when high RPI, more polarized in their responses. Together, these results indicate that a tree-based modeling approach yields a more sensitive measure of individuals’ RPI as well as their tendency to respond more or less extremely.

Adolescent Peer Pressure, Leisure Boredom, and Substance Use in Low-Income Cape Town Communities

The aim in this study was to determine whether or not peer pressure and leisure boredom influenced substance use among adolescents in low-income communities in Cape Town, South Africa. Nonprobability sampling was used to select 291 adolescents aged between 16 and 18 years who were attending schools in 2 low-income communities in Cape Town. The research instruments were the Drug Use Disorders Identification Test, the Resistance to Peer Influence measure, and the Leisure Boredom Scale. Multiple regression analysis showed that the combined influence of peer pressure and leisure boredom predicted substance use among the adolescents. Of the two factors, peer pressure was the stronger predictor of substance use.