Open AccessFriendly Girls and Mean Girls: Social Constructions of Popularity among Teenage Girls in S hanghai
Author(s) -
Xi Juzhe,
Owens Laurence,
Feng Huarun
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
japanese psychological research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.392
H-Index - 30
eISSN - 1468-5884
pISSN - 0021-5368
DOI - 10.1111/jpr.12101
Subject(s) - popularity , psychology , prestige , aggression , perspective (graphical) , social psychology , social status , developmental psychology , sociology , social science , linguistics , philosophy , artificial intelligence , computer science
Two different research traditions in the West see popularity defined either sociometrically, as being well‐liked, or in a peer‐perceived way as being publically visible and having social status and influence. Recent Q studies in A ustralia and E ngland have supported the public prestige conception of popularity but we do not know how teenagers in A sian cultures view popularity. The current study used Q methodology and individual interviews to investigate the social constructions of popularity among 53 (16‐ to 19‐year old) girls from two schools in S hanghai. Q factor analysis revealed one common perspective—popular girls were considered to be friendly and pro‐social, while unpopular girls were characterized by relational aggression and self‐centeredness. The interview data indicated that among S hanghai girls, the popularity concept was more related to peer acceptance than to social influence. The differences in the features of popular girls in this S hanghai‐based study and teenage girls in Western studies are discussed.