Prior research suggests that adolescents who place a high value on achieving high social status are particularly vulnerable to peer influence (Baumrind & Moselle, 1985; Cillessen & Mayeux, 2004), and that popularity and high levels of agency prospectively predict risky adolescent behaviors such as sexual behavior and substance use (Mayeux, Sandstrom, & Cillessen, 2008; Markey, Markey & Tinsley, 2005). In short, an adolescent’s social status (or desired social status) among peers may increase vulnerability to peer influence and the likelihood of engaging in risk behavior. Agentic adolescents place a high value on appearing confident, independent and dominant over peers, and may believe that endorsing positive views of substance use will make them “look cool” or garner respect from peers. That is, agentic adolescents may believe that endorsing attitudes supportive of substance use will help them achieve their desired high social status. Accordingly, adolescents characterized by high levels of agency are hypothesized to respond to perceived peer approval/use of substances with strong intentions to smoke and drink in the future.
