A Division Of Our Own Making
Cliques have positive and negative impacts on a student’s well-being
Cliques can keep students from being their true selves and can even have a negative impact on their mental health.
January 14, 2020
High school cliques.
It’s been a controversial topic for a long long time. Are they good or bad? Is it good for students to have this idea of social division at such a young age? Does being in a specific clique affect a student’s well-being? Is it possible for cliques to positively affect us? There are always two sides to every story and topic. Let’s explore both sides.
High school cliques have been a thing for almost the whole history of high school. As humans, we divided ourselves naturally into what we thought fit each of us. There’s always been this idea of smart kids, popular kids, athletic kids and etc. Over time kids have grown up with those stereotypes and tried to mold themselves into whatever clique they wanted to “belong” in. In doing so, they may have changed themselves completely or in an unhealthy way.
Cliques can keep students from being their true selves and can even have a negative impact on their mental health. According to an article on verywellfamily.com, “Cliques damage a person’s sense of identity.
No longer will your teen have a clear understanding of her likes and dislikes but instead will just go along with the group. She may even struggle with her moral compass as the pressure to belong increases.” Students in a specific clique may feel pressured to like the same things that everyone else does. Or do the same things that other people in their group are doing. It can lead to negative peer pressure and being under the influence of bad people.
Another negative of high school cliques is you might not be experiencing true friendships. If you feel forced to belong to a certain clique because of common stereotypes, then you may not be experiencing a true friendship with these people. There are certain groups of people that are just together because they feel like they have to be. This results in fake friends. And unfortunately, some people in these situations feel like they can’t escape. So you are caught up in these people who you think are your friends but in reality, you could just be hurting yourself by being around these people.
There are positive impacts on cliques, not just negative ones. Cliques can give students a positive sense of belonging. There are groups of friends that are together because they all really like each other and complement each other well. Being around people that share your same interests and enjoy being around you can help to boost your mood and self-confidence. You can always try to develop genuine and good friendships with these people. For example, by joining a club for a certain activity, you can connect and bond with the people there over your similar interests.
There are always pros and cons to every topic. What do you think?
