Popular kids. A term you’ve probably heard. Or you might even be a popular kid. Whether you are a popular kid, social outcast, or just somewhere in-between, I’m sure you’ve wondered why some people are deemed socially “better” than others, even if they aren’t the kindest. Surprisingly, there’s some psychology behind it.
First off, we need to establish what “popular” even means. The definition that dictionary.com uses defines popularity as “regarded with favor, approval, or affection by people in general,” though you may have a different connotation (your own definition of something).
Popular kids can fit into three main categories: loved, feared, and a mixture of both. Loved popular kids maintain their social spot through kindness and cooperation. Kids that are popular through fear are more aggressive and maintain their spot through that and coercion (persuading someone to do something through force or threats). Popular kids that are loved and feared can be aggressive in maintaining their status, but can play nice when need be (“What Makes a Popular Kid, Popular?”).
Before we get into a bit of psychology behind it, we’ll start with what some people at our very own THS think.
Our first interview is with Riley Smith.
Riley said that her definition of ‘popular’ is “being known by [a lot of] people.”
She continued, saying that people who “play sports and do stuff outside school” are more likely to be known and is something a lot of popular kids have in common.
Other factors that she says feeds into being popular is “having an upperclassman as a sibling or having a relationship with one.”
Though Riley says that popularly probably doesn’t carry on through life because you’re “not going to see each other every day.”
Our next interviewee, Iker Martinez, had a slightly different mindset on some things.
Iker started by defining a ‘popular kid’ as “someone who has connections,” but that that person “doesn’t have to be liked.”
Continuing on, he said that “actions” are a big part of being popular, and people who “make scenes” or have “made a scene” can be well-known from people remembering the scene.
He proceeded by saying that a lot of well-known people have “big egos,” but that “aura farming” and being “energetic” also play a part.
He also said that “depending on who you’re with” popularity could carry on past high school.
Allison Belcher went decently in depth with her answers, which is great for the article.
Her personal definition of ‘popular’ is being “‘friends’ with everyone” and can “go around all confident because they’re ‘friends’ with everyone.”
Allison said that people become popular because of a “belief that they can be better than those who are different” and they “fit into a crowd of people similar to them.”
Elaborating, she said that notoriety can also be a thing of “status,” for example having things like “money, friends, connections, and playing sports.”
She believes that popularity can carry on through life because “once you get into that mindset, you won’t get out.”
The final interviewee of today’s article is Peyton West.
Peyton defined popularity/popular kids as “having a lot of friends.”
He said that popular kids become popular because they can “get out there,” they “know people,” they “like [the] same things as others,” and are “known for something good – like football.”
According to Peyton, things common between popular kids is that they are into “music” and “sports,” and that they “stand out to everyone.”
He was sort of in the middle about whether or not popularity goes on, saying that it “stops after high school because people graduate,” but it “depends on social media” and if they “posted a video that goes viral.”
I greatly appreciate all the different viewpoints, but now it’s on to research and psychology behind it.
The main focus in young kids for notoriety is likeability, but as we grow into adolescence, it becomes less about solely likeability, but mixes with status. At least in the United States, status is determined by “attractiveness,” “impressive resources – such as money, clothes, and cars,” and “social aggression or dominance” (Luna).
Despite that, it also depends on where you are, for example it depends on what country or state you live in, where you are, and even where you go to school (Luna).
Popularity generally peaks in middle school to early high school. An estimated one third of 9-12th graders would consider popularity more important than friendships (Kennedy-Moore). Teenagers tend to be really keen on the difference between popularity and likability, and how the two don’t always overlap (“What Makes a Popular Kid, Popular?”).
Throughout early teenage years, this thing that could be referred to as the “popularity hierarchy” is created, with more liked popular kids at the top and the “social rejects” – the least popular kids – are at the bottom. These hierarchies can create a form of competition, where social aggression towards maintaining popularity can be used as a tool, being rewarded with more popularity (Laninga-Wigen).
Popularity is a relatively confusing concept with all the different things involved, whether it be the status and likability or just the definition of popular. Even so, I hope I did well at telling you a bit of the psychology behind it, even if it wasn’t everything you hoped and dreamed.
