Being popular is often a goal of students during the school years. There are positives to being popular and there are negatives.
Perception of Popularity
The side effect of being popular is having an active social life. Other students want to be your friend. But, who determines popularity? The University of Virginia has recently done research on popularity and determined that it is not what people think it is.
Researchers followed 164 adolescents from diverse backgrounds and learned that students that perceived themselves as popular enjoyed the same benefits as those that were actually determined to be popular. Students that saw themselves as socially accepted were less hostile. Students that did not sense acceptance by peers were more hostile and withdrawn.
"During adolescence, teens’ perceptions of their own social success may be a crucial predictor of long-term social functioning, such that even teens who are not broadly popular may demonstrate positive adjustment over time if they maintain a positive internal sense of their social acceptance," according to Kathleen Boykin McElhaney, research associate in psychology at the University of Virginia and the lead author of the study. [1]
McElhaney believes the study shows that a person’s perception of popularity and true popularity have the same effect.
Popularity and Financial Earning Power
The Institute for Social and Economic Research believes that being popular in school could mean that students earn a larger income later in life. The Wisconsin Longitudinal Study found a link between popularity and adult salaries. Students that had good social skills were more successful as adults. A distinction was made between being talkative and being popular. Talkative students were not as successful as the popular students.
Professor Steve Pudney said, "The work emphasized the critical importance of the early development of social skills alongside learning as a basis for economic success in adult life." [2]
Negatives of Teen Popularity
Does popularity have a downside? According to the May/June 2005 issue of the journal Child Development finds that popularity does have a downside. The study was conducted by researchers from
- University of Virginia
- University of Washington
- Davidson College
It was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and followed 185 seventh and eighth graders for one year. The study not only monitored popularity but also:
- Attachment security
- Self-esteem
- Ability to develop close friendships
- Relationship with parents
- Alcohol and substance abuse
- Behavioral problems
The results were noted by lead researcher Joseph P. Allen, PhD, professor of psychology at the University of Virginia. "Popular adolescents are popular in part because they are carefully attuned to the norms of their peer groups. As these norms increasingly come to support even minor levels of deviant behavior during adolescence, popular teens may be more susceptible," said Allen. Popular students with friends that exhibited deviant behavior such as shoplifting and vandalism were more likely to participate in these behaviors. [3]
The peers that popular students select are crucial. Peers influence students and popular students feel more pressure to go along with the crowd. Birds of a feather flock together. Peers and popularity are a factor in socially acceptable behavior.
[1] "Teens’ Perception That They Are Liked Found To Be At Least As Important As Actually Being Liked," ScienceDaily.com, May 15, 2008.
[2] "Popular Kids Earn More When They Grow Up," ScienceDaily.com, March 10, 2009.
[3] "The Dark Side of Adolescent Popularity," Sciencedaily.com, May 17, 2005.
Related article: Effects of Playground Popularity
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