Popularity Explained: The Social Psychology of Grade School

by A.L. Freedman

Popularity is a social phenomenon that re-emerges every year in every school around the world; yet, despite how common it is and how important it is to students, it has never been fully explained. This book is NOT a how-to-guide of tired cliches nor is it a story of personal growth and discovery. With clear language and simple logic, Popularity Explained answers how popularity works and why it emerges so predictably. Based on published scientific literature, it draws on concepts from psychology and neuroscience to explain this fascinating social phenomenon.

For more information, please see: PopularityExplained.com

Contents
Preface
Chapter 1: The Phenomenon That Is
Chapter 2: Students We All Know
Chapter 3: The Hierarchy of Attraction
Chapter 4: Input of Energy
Chapter 5: Attraction, Liking, and Attachment
Chapter 6: The Emergence of Popularity
Chapter 7: Liking and Disliking
Chapter 8: The Situation
Chapter 9: Friendship and the Genesis of Cliques
Chapter 10: Breaking In and Painful Self Discovery
Chapter 11: Some Questions Answered
Chapter 12: Practical Advice and Conclusions
Appendix 1: The Original Essay
Appendix 2: Further Reading
Acknowledgements
Bibliography

312 pages, Paperback

First published August 20, 2012

Reviews

[Tuna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book clearly explains the phenomenon of popularity clearly. Gives information of attraction, attachment and liking and hierarchies in a community. Would recommend this to people who want to understand how people make friendships, get attracted to other people and want to understand popularity.

[Chelsea Seinar · Rating 1 out of 5]

If I wanted to hear a bunch of Mean Girls quotes, I would just watch Mean Girls. And I would enjoy it more and learn more than I did from this book.

[S.Site13 · Rating 5 out of 5]

A surprisingly well researched book that delivers what the title promises. I love that the author actually CITES their sources. (with a handy "Further Reading" section at the back if you want to follow up)

The first few chapters develop ideas I hadn't heard before, like "Input of Energy" which come together towards the end of the book in an attempt to explain how popularity works. Its an explanation that's immediately satisfying because it seems so obvious in hindsight. By chapter 6 you start to figure it out and then you're like, "duh... it's so simple."

My only criticism is that sometimes the language and vocabulary get a bit heavy. There are multiple anecdotes and stories throughout to keep it light but its only suitable for the advanced high school reader and up.

A good read all-in-all. It brought back memories of high school and made me re-think some of my own experiences. It's also funny to see some of these things happen at work between my co-workers.