Cliques

David Balsimo

Mrs. Reed

Senior Composition

16 March 2008

Cliques in High Schools

“For the most part, we do not first see, and then define; we define first and then seeвЂ¦Ð²Ð‚Ñœ (Berelson and Janowitz). In this paper, I will be discussing stereotypes of cliques. I will also examine how cliques can have a negative effect on high school students’ social skills. I will first explain stereotypes, then I will clarify the difference between cliques and crowds, and I will talk about the characteristics and influences of cliques, and finally I will discuss why cliques can be dangerous.

Everyone, no matter who they are, use stereotypes it is a natural part of being a human being. Wikipedia.com defines stereotypes as, “a simplified and/or standardized conception or image with specific meaning, often held in common by one group of people about another group.” Stereotypes aid in how people see others, and can be positive or negative thoughts or feelings. Most commonly stereotypes group persons based on racial group, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation.

There are many different factors that affect stereotypes: historical factors, generalization, first impressions, association of persons with groups, ect. People tend to develop stereotypes when they are unable or unwilling to obtain all of the information we would need to make fair judgments about people or situations. It is easier to create stereotypes when there is a clearly visible and constant quality that can easily be recognized. This is why people of color, police and women are so easily stereotype. For example, if an African American male who is wearing baggy pants, a bandana and listening to rap music is walking down the street, the stereotype might be that he is in a gang and quite possibly you might turn around and walk the other direction.

According to Bishop, we must first know the difference between a clique and a crowd. Cliques are small exclusive tightly knit groups who often share similar attitudes and behavior pattersn, due in part to their influence on eachother. In the strictest defintion a clique is simply a small group of friends with common interests. Crowds are defined as, “reputation-based collectives of similarly stereotyped individuals who may or may not spend time together.”

Crowd membership is often determined by stereotypical aspects such as: race, clothing, value systems, lifestyles, and physiques. Crowd membership can start to affect children as early as middle school when others are already determing where they believe you fit in. It also can determine what friends you are “allowed” to have. Once assigned to a particular crowd, it is difficult to change.

Clique membership is a little different than crowd membership. Like crowds, cliques typcially form during middle school and continue into high school. Cliques is more of a chosen path versus crowds usually you are just lumped into one by someone else. In recent years, there have been reports of children forming cliques at younger and younger ages. This could be caused by the rise of working parents placing their children in day care, therefore causing children to begin socializing earlier in lfire. Cliques become more important in middle school and high school because this is when peer influences rises and contact with parents decreases. On average, adolescents spend on-third of all waking hours with friends; they spend, in comparison, only fifteen percent of time with their parents(http://www.bc.edu/sites/genpulse/issues/stereotypes_cliques.html)

Cliques vary in size from three to ten members, with most having about five members. Many of the same cliques in high schools across the nation, and many similar cliques continue to exist throughout the decades. In a survey where 100,000 high school students were given traits and asked to assign them to the “popular” clique these were the results (Bishop):

Cool Clothes- 64 %

Attractive- 61%

Funny- 60%

Good in Sports- 55%

Outgoing- 53%

Self Confident- 48%

Worked hard for Grades- 22%

Attentive in Class- 21%

Smart- 19%

These results