“As social groups, cliques introduce young people to negative aspects of society, such as conflict and prejudice.”

—Debra J. Jordan

“Cliques are not an entirely negative aspect of the high school social structure.”

—Nathan Black

“When kids are tossed together everyday, six hours a day for the entire school year,” says psychologist Thomas J. Berdnt, “friendship groupings form quite naturally.” These “friendship groupings,” better known as cliques, are small, tightly knit, autonomous, and sometimes inclusive groups of people that share the same interests or characteristics. Members of cliques often share the same values and exhibit the same behavior. Although they have been known to form in elementary school, cliques are commonly associated with middle and high school students. In a recent nationwide survey of teenage girls’ views of cliques, 96.3 percent of the respondents claimed that...