Insufficient sleep among US adolescents across behavioral risk groups
Peer-Reviewed Publication
Updates every hour. Last Updated: 29-Apr-2026 11:16 ET (29-Apr-2026 15:16 GMT/UTC)
As kids enter adolescence, peer influence splits in two—often in ways adults miss. Following 543 middle schoolers for one semester, researchers found that best friends shape teens’ inner lives, from emotional struggles to academic challenges, while popular peers influence public, status-driven behaviors like social media use and weight concerns. Far from being easily swayed, adolescents navigate peer influence strategically—an insight frequently overlooked by parents and educators.
While decades of research have shown that students’ motivational beliefs tend to decline beginning in upper elementary school, new evidence suggests that students’ motivation during this stage is more stable than previously assumed.
In a new commentary, two deeply rooted assumptions in global demographic debates are challenged: that fertility will rebound as societies develop, and that “replacement-level fertility” is an ideal to be pursued. Drawing on the latest evidence, the authors show that neither view is supported by available data and argue that persistently low fertility can be sustainable and even economically desirable.