Peer Power

1. Peer Power Chris Bond Nick Curry Nick Hancock Kiefer Schenk Adrienne Suter

2. So You Think You Know Everything……But you don’t • You’ve been in school since you were 4 or 5 years old. • Many people don’t realize how their actions contribute to the complexity of the school social hierarchy • All social dynamics can essentially be boiled down to two types of interaction: inclusion, and exclusion.

3. Cliques A “clique” is centered around one or two “clique leaders” (individuals who have the right charisma, right clothes, right connections) • Leaders use their popularity to control those below them in social status and to maintain their own status • The group must have compliance to the leader’s views

4. Hierarchy • Ironically, groups need the approval of others outside the group in order to sustain their dominance in the social ladder • Groups need to maintain a fine balance of likeability and exclusiveness • Within the group, there are levels…who is “allowed” to do certain things, who is the “trendsetter” etc…every person has a role to fill

5. Inclusion • Recruitment—group members bring people in from outside the group, but then must face approval from group leaders (who have veto power) • Ingratiation = method to maintain absolute power (using flattery/persuasion to maintain popularity) • Once a person is an officially sanctioned “member”, often the leaders will begin to use the newest member (the group stops giving them special treatment and they must let go of former friends) • People outside the clique can gain entry by taking initiative and befriending lower-level members of the clique

6. Exclusion • Subjugation (picking on others, both within and out of the group) • Group members occasionally try to gain the admiration of the “outsiders”, but will often make fun of their classmates to maintain a certain level of exclusiveness and power • Sometimes, members may face ejection from the group if the person loses favor with the group leader

7. Expulsion • “Contingency friends” (ejected members of the popular clique will attempt to make new friends with the unpopular crowd) • Many expelled members have a difficult time making new friends because they spent so much time making fun of them or showing their superiority to those they considered “below them”

8. Manipulation • The “group” uses its power to manipulate people outsiders • If someone offends a group member, not only can members of the group retaliate, but they can influence those outside the group to completely isolate the offending person • Case study: The Gummy-bear Necklace

9. The Social Pyramid • Not only is there a hierarchy within each clique, the cliques themselves from a larger-scale hierarchy that makes up a social structure • More popular/powerful cliques are at the “top” and can influence the lower-level cliques

10. Discussion Questions • Do you think a social hierarchy exists at Penfield? How is it different from the one explained in this presentation? • What causes people to strive for power and influence among their peers? • Why do people seek image rather than happiness? Is it possible to unite the two, or are they mutually exclusive?