It is difficult for a parent to see their children hanging out with the wrong crowd. Usually, the “wrong crowd” is composed of antisocial students who dislike school and loves alcohol, tobacco, and drugs. Your child might even tell you that their crowd is better than the preppies and the jocks but the truth is, the crowd they are hanging it will actually bring them more harm than good. But before you forbid your child to hang out with them, you should also consider that this crowd may in fact, be kind to your child. That’s the reason why he or she may be friends with them. So act carefully because you don’t want to risk alienating your child when you remove him from his negative peers.

It is important for the parent not to pressure kids to make friends because they may feel that they are disappointing you when they have no friends to show. In addition, having not enough friends might trigger self-consciousness and negativity which will push them to the wrong crowd for validation. It has also been noted that rebellious kids often come from divided families. For example, the mother might set the children against the father or vice versa. This teaches the child that the relationship becomes stronger when they are against the same enemy; they will take the same concept with them at school.