Developmental psychologyChapter 20Social problems in schools Social pressures in the classroomOne key factor is he process of social comparison whereby the child compares his or her performance with classmates.Comparison is usually upward, with students who perform better than themselves but who seem similar to them on a rage of related and unrelated attributes.Such comparison can raise the child’s level of academic performance but can also result in negative self-perceptions.Self-worth protection: the tendency of some students to reduce their levels of effort so that any subsequent poor academic performance will be attributed to low motivation rather than a lack of ability.Peer pressure to work, or not!An important social factor in school concerns pressure to work, or not to work, hard in class and on homework.There is a very different nature of peer pressure in Eastern and Western cultures.In eastern cultures, striving is typically seen as praiseworthy.Children in US and UK often discourage any overt display of academic engagement by their classmates. Academic success in itself is not necessarily problematic for acceptance. Effortless success is generally admired.As high stakes testing in many countries increasingly lead teachers, parents and students focus upon success on a variety of externally regulated tests and examinations, it is not surprising that student stress levels on relation to academic performance can often be high. Bullying is usually taken...