You are the new kid. You walk into your first class at your new school. Instantly, you spot a girl who stands out among the rest of your peers. Her face is caked with makeup, and she laughs as she flips back her hair. Everyone seems to like her, want to be her. Yet, some of her “friends” glare at her when no one is looking. Next is the girl who sits around the group and tries to laugh with them. They just look at her. The cause of the laughter is a boy who is whispering nasty jokes about her and making the group laugh. She doesn’t know it’s herself she’s laughing at. Her craving for acceptance blinds her. You take in the rest of the class. You almost miss him. It’s the boy with his head down as he reads a thick, paperback book. He sits a alone.
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Professor Mitch Prinstein said that there are two types of popular- one that is status obsessed and one that is liked. (Anderson) “Some are popular because they are likeable- their peers like them, trust them, and want to be with them. Others are popular because they somehow gain a certain status and use that power to wield influence over others.”(Anderson) “Since status is easier to achieve than being likeable, teenagers default to status-seeking.”(Anderson) What are the effects of each kind of popular? “He (Prinstein) shows that people who seek to be likeable tend to end up healthier, in better relationships, with more fulfilling work, and even live longer. Status- seekers on the other hand, often end up anxious, depressed, and with addiction problems.” These two categories can also be called prosocial and antisocial popular.(Kennedy) Prosocial popular students are the nice ones that are friendly and do well in school.(Kennedy) Antisocial popular students are the “cool” students that are socially competent, but not kind.(Kennedy) These adolescents are usually the “tough boys” that are good athletes ,but poor students that get in trouble.(Kennedy) They also use a combination of kindness and bullying to enhance their social status. (Kennedy) I have seen many of my peers fit into these categories throughout middle school and even elementary school. In our current day and age, more and more people are drawn to being status-seekers and antisocially popular. Thus, providing us with our stereotypical “mean girl” who seeks a high status, has “friends”, and manipulates others to enhance the status that she
Professor Mitch Prinstein said that there are two types of popular- one that is status obsessed and one that is liked. (Anderson) “Some are popular because they are likeable- their peers like them, trust them, and want to be with them. Others are popular because they somehow gain a certain status and use that power to wield influence over others.”(Anderson) “Since status is easier to achieve than being likeable, teenagers default to status-seeking.”(Anderson) What are the effects of each kind of popular? “He (Prinstein) shows that people who seek to be likeable tend to end up healthier, in better relationships, with more fulfilling work, and even live longer. Status- seekers on the other hand, often end up anxious, depressed, and with addiction problems.” These two categories can also be called prosocial and antisocial popular.(Kennedy) Prosocial popular students are the nice ones that are friendly and do well in school.(Kennedy) Antisocial popular students are the “cool” students that are socially competent, but not kind.(Kennedy) These adolescents are usually the “tough boys” that are good athletes ,but poor students that get in trouble.(Kennedy) They also use a combination of kindness and bullying to enhance their social status. (Kennedy) I have seen many of my peers fit into these categories throughout middle school and even elementary school. In our current day and age, more and more people are drawn to being status-seekers and antisocially popular. Thus, providing us with our stereotypical “mean girl” who seeks a high status, has “friends”, and manipulates others to enhance the status that she