When friends make you poorer
Surprising insights from the social sciences
By Kevin Lewis | June 21, 2009
Peer pressure can make people, especially young people, do stupid things. New research finds that this includes one’s choice of career. A team of economists tested the hypothesis that peer groups can push college students into the wrong major. The economists analyzed data from a university program that randomly assigned students to classes (and thus classmates) for the first few semesters, after which students chose one of two majors. The data showed that students tend to gravitate to a major chosen by more of their peers. And the students whose choice was driven by their peers were then more likely to end up in lower-paying jobs that they didn’t like.
DeGiorgi, G. et al., “Be as Careful of the Company You Keep as of the Books You Read: Peer Effects in Education and on the Labor Market,” National Bureau of Economic Research (May 2009).
Kevin Lewis is an Ideas columnist. He can be reached at kevin.lewis.ideas@gmail.com. 
