High School: The In and Out Groups

High school is an experience most American students encounter and can relate to, that also poses as a simple and understandable social group. A social group is a cluster of people who interact in everyday life. Although high school peers do not choose whom they learn with, it is still a shared experience with very similar motives. I consider high school a secondary social group, but with in high school there are countless primary social groups. The primary social group that is most prominent is every different clique and group of friends.

If a large group of the school went to the football games, they would be considered a crowd because they only have a temporary united status. Within these different social groups there is almost always a leader. In organizations such at a sports team or student council, they’re either a captain or a president. These leaders range from instrumental (task oriented) leaders to expressive (people orientated) leaders. A captain of a football team could be considered as an authoritarian or democratic leader. A captain makes decisions with compliance from members, but he is also a member of the group. A president of the student council would be considered a authoritarian leader, because they are an elected leader who’s position is to make decisions for the group. 

On football teams, sometimes there is group thinking toward the freshman players. The group conforms and decides is it okay to haze the younger players as a way of initiation. Within a football team there are also many reference groups. Depending on whom you are comparing there are unlimited comparisons. The freshman class is a social group serving as a point of reference in making evaluations and decisions for the senior class. Also within the team there are always reference groups that a player compares himself or herself to or are a part of. A team is a mixture of different players with special talents. There are kickers, linebackers, receivers, etc.  

Unfortunately, in high school, there will most always be an in group and an out-group. This is illustrated simply as the "cool" kids and the "uncool" kids. The cool kids usually hold an overly positive view of themselves in contrast to the uncool kids who may be defined as a lower status. Groups are also made up of many different sizes. Most people have that one best friend making a dyad group, and then there are triads and beyond. The larger groups are more stable, because there are multiple interactions. Networking can help form bonds in high school. A network is a web of weak social ties; people we know and people who know us. Even if you don’t know every person in your school, social media connects strangers and acquaintances throughout the school. There are many different dynamics to social groups in high school, but no matter what, they were always be a parallel example with every different factor of social groups.

Eckert, Penelope. Jocks and burnouts: Social categories and identity in the high school. Teachers College Press, 1989.

Tajfel, Henri, ed. Social identity and intergroup relations. Vol. 7. Cambridge University Press, 2010.