Unlike parents, siblings, teachers, and church leaders and officials who have power over teens who are trying to socialize, peers possess no such power. In fact, they are equal in social status and do not have the power to punish or sanction behavior. Unlike a family you are born into or a school you have to attend, peer groups are voluntary associations, adolescents can leave and join the peer group at any time. However, losing friends is a big problem, because teenagers evaluate themselves based on the number of friends they have. During the teenage years, peers play an important role in socialization, especially in American society, where most parents are so busy with 9-to-5 jobs that they don't have the chance to spend much time with their children . Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Peers teach some important qualities that other socialization agents cannot. For example, they teach independence from authority, but at the same time conformity to the peer group. This is evident when we see a teenager begging his parents to go to the movies with his friends alone without adult supervision. The teenager wants to feel independent. However, at the same time, he must try to conform to the values ​​and beliefs of the peer group in order to integrate and attend. One way to gain independence from authority is to form a youth subculture, which sometimes comes into conflict with parents, teachers and church officials due to the difference in attitude they present. For example, adults have different values ​​and beliefs about alcohol consumption. A member of a peer group would probably think that as long as you know who you are drinking with and don't drink too much, and don't put yourself in a position to get hurt; then drinking is fine and harmless. The adult would disagree by saying that drinking doesn't hurt one physically, but when they are drunk they have no control over what they do. They would probably say that drinking also leads to serious medical problems. I believe peer groups are so important in American society because family is not highly valued in the culture. In Japanese, Armenian, Mexican and Persian cultures, family has great value. Families spend a lot of time together and rely on each other for support. The elders of the family rely on the support of other members. However, in American society, family members are so busy with work and life outside the home that they do not have much time to devote to their children, who come to spend much of their time with their friends and rely on their friends. for advice and support.