A short YouTube monologue by Vanessa Van Edwards summarizing Van Sloan’s research on teenage popularity: the most popular teens tended to "like" the most peers, were liked by more people in return, and exhibited behaviors (e.g., more smiling in hallways) that signal reciprocal liking. The clip emphasizes the social-psychology principle that we like people who like us.
Can you guess what makes the most popular kids popular? Van Sloan did a really interesting research experiment with teenagers. It wasn't the most beautiful girls or the hottest guys. What it was is the most popular kids also liked the most people. They were asked, who do you like? They had the longest list. And that also meant that they were liked by the most people. And this was measured by Typically, they smiled more in the hallways. I just started smiling. Everyone in the hallways, too, without realizing it. You were actually activating a scientific principle that we like people who like us.
