Peer pressure for teenagers is nothing new. However, social media worsens this pressure
because teens are exposed to and getting feedback from many more people than they would
encounter in daily life.
Teens can be especially influenced by “likes” on social media sites like Instagram or Facebook. In
a small 2016 study of teenage participants, researchers created a social media feed similar to
Instagram and measured the teens’ brain responses. Here’s what they found:
- Teens were more likely to “like” photos that already had a large number of likes.
- Teens’ brain activity — specifically areas associated with reward processing and attention - was
greater when viewing photos with more “likes”.
- This was true whether the photo depicted risky behaviour (such as a peer holding a cigarette)
or not.
These results indicate that teens learn from the social cues of their peers online and take note
when they are rewarded with “likes” and attention.
- worsen (v): trở nên xấu đi
- depict (v): miêu tá
1. What is the passage mainly about?
A. Peer pressure for teens
B. How peer pressure influences teens on social media
C. Negative and positive effects of social media
D. Peer pressure and social media
2. The word “encounter” in the first paragraph can be best replaced by _____________.
A. have B. like C. know D. meet
3. What does the author imply in the first paragraph?
A. Using social media is a reason why teens have higher peer pressure.
B. Using social media is not related to peer pressure for teens.
C. Teens can make more friends thanks to social media.
D. Teens want to interact with people on social media instead of in daily life.
4. The word “they” in the second paragraph refers to _____________.
Ms Hằng – 0397.333.414 Page 3
A. researchers B. teens C. participants D. brain responses
5. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. “Likes” on social media can positively affect teenagers.
B. Both adults and teens participated in the study.
C. Teens seemed to like photos that had a large number of likes.
D. Teens’ brain activity wasn’t greater when they viewed photos with more “likes”.