Poll What high school archetype were you back in the day? (24 votes)
Lol, taken from https://www.metroparent.com/daily/parenting/tweens-teens/categories-of-high-school-cliques-identified/
Which one are you, OT? I think the Floater sums me up well. Somehow managed to make friends with all kinds of people lol.
Populars
Urban Dictionary defines this clique as the kids who have it all. They’re the “good looking” kids that always sport the latest top-of-the-line clothing and tech.
They may also be known as preps and are sometimes viewed as the “bullies” or “mean girls” by cliques lower on the list.
Jocks
These are the kids whose entire life revolves around sports. They have always taken a higher spot on the social ladder, and this study proves they’re still holding onto that spot.
They are sometimes classified by lower listed groups as being bullies, but Urban Dictionary differentiates between “athletes” and “jocks,” claiming that athletes are more likely to hang our with everyone, despite their status on the team.
Floaters
Floaters are the kids that don’t really have one specific group of kids they hang out with — you may have referred to them as “drifters” or “clique jumpers” in the past.
Urban Dictionary says these kids are generally shy but are also polite and friendly. They tend to have a lot of friends and get along with most everyone, which is why they’ve historically scored high on the list.
Good-ats
You may have known this clique as the overachievers or maybe even the teachers’ pets. They’re the kids that are good at just about everything and generally participate in and excel at a multitude of extracurricular activities or volunteer work.
Generally, these participants in the study exceled at well-roundedness, which lands them among the more popular cliques.
‘Fine arts’ kids
According to the study, this group of kids made a leap up the list due in part to high levels of extracurricular engagement.
They may use color, art, piercings and other body modifications to express themselves and tend to have a more creative appearance. You may know them as “indie” or “hipster.”
The brains
These are the “smart kids,” “nerds,” “brainiacs.” The ones that excel in their schoolwork and consistently pull good grades.
The study found that this group exhibited high levels of academic anxiety and were “less mentally healthy” due to fear of upsetting their parents.
Historically, they’ve fallen in the middle of the pack and continue to hold onto their spot.
Normals
These are the kids that are unknown. They might feel “invisible” and don’t really fall into any other clique, so they embrace one another and fall smack dab in the middle of the pack.
Stoners
Burnouts. Potheads. Druggies. The kids who smoke weed or do drugs fall into this category.
Research notes that because these kids can score drugs and bring them to parties frequented by higher cliques, they’ve always fallen toward the top of the middle in terms of popularity, but lost a little of their footing due to anti-drug and smoking campaigns.
Urban Dictionary notes that these kids are generally pretty cool, laid-back and get along with most everyone.
Emo/goths
You know those kids that wear all black, dye their hair dark, sport the black nail polish and see the beauty in darkness? Those are the kids in this clique.
These kids focus on counter-culture behaviors and are generally quiet and somewhat withdrawn.
Anime/manga fans
This is the newest peer group found by the study and is basically a modern twist on the classic “computer geek” crowd. They embrace Japanese pop culture, including animated series, films, graphic novels and other artwork and may spend their time online experiencing and sharing their passion.
Loners
In this group are the kids that don’t really have friends or who are content being alone.
The study found that other cliques tend to be standoffish around them out of fear these kids may be dangerous, which it claims is “new and unique” to today’s youth due to the prevalence of active school shootings — though not all loners are at risk of becoming violent.
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