GRQUP REJECTION AND GSTRACISM ON THE BASIS OF APPEARANCE BE GIRLS AS RENE ARI} mam ERMA. ER THREE; SITUAHONAL STORIES “was Eco {Em ‘00ng GE M. A. MECEEGAEE SEATE UIEEEEKSETY Chariene Duck Akfien 1‘370 \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\E E 29 \ Ex \ l\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ 40 , 3 1293 GROUP Depar t1 GROUP REJECTION AND OSTRACISM ON THE BASIS OF APPEARANCE BY GIRLS AS NINTH AND TWELFTH GRADERS IN THREE SITUATIONAL STORIES BY Charlene Duch Allen AN ABSTRACT OF A THESIS SUBMITTED TO Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS Department of Textiles, Clothing and Related Arts 1970 E “a" I /' p. - GROUP REJE ' B m l h tionship o laxity, a}; groups to basis of a Ofrelect: Scores), I- A S w 5 II. 2 V III. 1 ‘ IV 1,7 GROUP REJECTION AND OSTRACISM ON THE BASIS OF APPEARANCE \ BY GIRLS AS NINTH AND TWELFTH GRADERS IN THREE SITUATIONAL STORIES BY Charlene Duch Allen The purpose of this study was to explore the rela- tionship of the variables of socio-economic status, popu- larity, and best-dressed scores of adolescent friendship groups to the proportion of group members rejecting on the basis of appearance (group rejection scores) and the number of rejections made by the group as a whole (group ostracism scores). The following hypotheses were formulated: I. Adolescent friendship groups with high best-dressed scores will have high rejector scores while groups with low best-dressed scores will have low rejector scores. II. Adolescent friendship groups with high best-dressed scores will have high ostracism scores, while groups with low best-dressed scores will have low ostracism scores. III. Adolescent friendship groups with high popularity scores will have high rejector scores while groups with low popularity scores will have low rejector scores. IV. Adolescent friendship groups with high popularity scores will have high ostracism scores while groups wi SC sc- wi‘ sc< VI. Adc SCC wit Charlene Duch Allen with low popularity scores will have low ostracism scores. V. Adolescent friendship groups with high socio-economic scores will have high rejector scores while groups with low socio-economic scores will have low rejector scores. VI. Adolescent friendship groups with high socio-economic scores will have high ostracism scores while groups with low socio-economic scores will have low ostracism scores. Background questionnaires concerning father's occupa- tion, residence, club membership and friendship and "opinion- naires" were administered to a class of high school girls as ninth graders and again as twelfth graders. From information obtained from the background questionnaires, sociograms were constructed showing reciprocated choices and group socio- economic scores were tabulated from the average of individual members' scores, obtained by use of an adaptation of Warner's Index. Group popularity and group best-dressed scores were obtained from questions asked in the "opinionnaire" as to which girls were the most pOpular and the best-dressed. Scores were calculated by dividing the number of times girls in the friendship group were "named" by the number of girls in the group. Three situational stories were presented to the res- pondents during the "opinionnaire" interviews in the ninth and twelfth grades. Each story concerned a girl deviating from the accepted dress mode; one wore mismatched separates, Charlene Duch Allen another wore "different" legwear, and the last had expensive clothes but messy hair. The respondents were asked if they would like the girls as girlfriends or invite them into their groups, despite their clothing or appearance. Group rejector scores were obtained by dividing the number of girls in a group rejecting (one or more times) by the number of girls in the group, while group ostracism scores consisted of divi- ding the sum of all rejections made by a group by the number of members in the group. When the hypotheses were tested statistically by means of the Q correlation coefficient, there was no substantial support for them, except that the ninth grade data yielded moderate support for hypotheses III and IV, indicating that a relationship could exist between the popularity of a group and its tendency to reject individuals on the basis of ap- pearance. However there was an absence of a relationship be- tween popularity and rejection and ostracism in the twelfth grade. Responses of the respondents were analyzed and it was found that: l. A moderate percentage (approximately 20% of both' ninth and twelfth grade respondents) rejected indivi- duals solely on the basis of their appearance and clothing. 2. Descriptions of individuals' appearance and clothing were alone sufficient to elicit negative impressions of the individuals. 3. Respondents associated feelings of "uncomfortability, embarrassment, and self-consciousness" with clothing that did not conform to the accepted adolescent mode. Charlene Duch Allen Proportionately, isolates in the.ninth grade placed less importance on clothing and conformity, and re- jected individuals less often on the basis of ap- pearance than friendship group members. There tended to be a diminishing emphasis upon confor-- mity from the ninth grade to the twelfth grade. The majority of respondents were quick to point out that "particular" or many groups or individuals judged on the basis of clothing. GROUI in DepartmEn GROUP REJECTION AND OSTRACISM ON THE BASIS OF APPEARANCE BY GIRLS AS NINTH AND TWELFTH GRADERS IN THREE SITUATIONAL STORIES BY Charlene Duch Allen A THESIS SUBMITTED TO Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS Department of Textiles, Clothing and Related Arts 1970 PREFACE This is the last in a series of theses stemming from the longitudinal project, "Ninth and Twelfth Grade Girls' Attitudes and Behavior Related to Role, Appearance, Social Class, and Group Acceptance," under the direction of Dr. Joanne B. Eicher and sponsored by the Michigan State Agri- cultural Experiment Station. The population in the study consisted of an entire class of girls, who were followed from the ninth through the twelfth grades. Theses resul- ting from the data gathered on this population were as follows: Wass, Betty (M.A., 1962). "Clothing as Related to Role Behavior of Ninth Grade Girls," --an exploratory study examining the ideal and actual clothing practices in various roles in relation to background factors, clothing awareness, clothing satisfaction and self- satisfaction. Bjorngaard, Arlene (M.A., 1962). "The Relationships of Social Class and Social Acceptance to ClOthing and Appearance of a Selected Group of Ninth Grade Girls," --an exploratory study investigating the relationships of social class position, social acceptance, and a oles- cent girls' perception of clothing and appearance. 1The Wass study questioned the same populations as did the later studies. She and the others used the same back- ground questionnaire; however, her clothing questionnaire differed from the others in that it was a questionnaire of clothing practices as related to four roles of a student: at school; at home watching T.V. or studying; at a basketball game, and in church. Bjorngaard did not analyze data from the entire ii Williams, Madelyn (M.A., 1963). "Opinions on Clo- thing, Appearance, and Social Acceptance as Factors in Group Cohesion of Ninth Grade Girls," --an exploratory study to determine if opinions on clothing, appearance, and group acceptance were factors which contributed to group cohesion or lack of cohesion. Hendricks, Suzanne (M.A., 1965). "Opinions on Clothing and Appearance as Related to Group and Non- Group Membership of Twelfth Grade Girls," --a study tes- ting the hypothesis, "Members of the same reciprocal friendship structure have similar opinions regarding clothing, appearance and group acceptance which con- tribute to group cohesion and their opinions differ from those of non-group members or members of other groups." Kelley, Eleanor (Ph.D., 1966). "Peer Group Friend- ships in One Class of High School Girls: Change and Stability," --study tracing the developing informal peer friendship structures of an entire class of high school girls from ninth through twelfth grades. Littrell, Mary Bishop (M.A., 1968). "Reference Groups and Isolates: A Study of Clothing and Appearance Opinions," --study testing the question, "Do adoles- cent girls who desire membership in particular peer reference groups and have opinions about clothing and appearance similar to those of the group become mem- bers of their desired peer reference groups?" Published articles in chronological order from this longitudinal study are as follow: Wass, Betty M., and Eicher, Joanne B. "Clothing as Related to Role Behavior of Teen-age Girls," Quarterly Bulletin: Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station, Michigan State University, East Lansing, XLVII, No. 2 (November, 1964), 206-13. Ostermeier, Arlene Bjorngaard, and Eicher, Joanne B. "Clothing and Appearance as Related to Social Class and Social Acceptance of Adolescent Girls," Quarterly Bulle- tin: Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station, Michigan State University, East Lansing, XLVIII, No. 3 (February, 1966), 431-36. population, but focused only on the upper and lower class group members and isolates, determined by Warner's socio- economic index and a sociogram. iii Williams, Madelyn C., and Eicher, Joanne B. "Teen- Agers' Appearance and Social Acceptance," Journal of Home Economics, LVIII, No. 6 (June, 1966), 457-61. Hendricks, Suzanne; Kelley, Eleanor; and Eicher, Joanne B. ."Senior Girls' Appearance and Social Accep- tance," Journal of Home Economics, LX, No. 3 (March, 1968), 167-72. Kelley, Eleanor and Eicher, Joanne B. "A Longitu- dinal Analysis of Popularity, Group Membership and Dress," Journal of Home Economics, LXII, No. 4 (April, 1970), 246-50. Grateful acknowledgement is made to the following individuals whose assistance made this-research possible: Dr. Joanne Eicher for her encouragement, suggestions, and guidance throughout the study. Dr. Donald Olmsted, for his assistance and sugges- tions. Previous researchers in this study, Betty Wass for development of the background questionnaire, Arlene Bjorn- gaard Ostermeier for the development of her "opionnaire," and Madelyn Williams, Suzahne Hendricks, Eleanor Kelley, and Mary Littrell for their insight into the project. All who took part in the longitudinal study: East Lansing High School administrators, teachers, students for their cooperation and the Michigan State University Experi- ment Station for its financial support.' The writer's parents for their encouragement through- out the master's degree program, the writer's sister for her library assistance, and the writer's husband for his encouragement and technical assistance. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter INTRODUCTION 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O I. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE . . . . . . . . Social Perception . . . . . . . . . . . Characteristics of the Perceiver Influencing Perception . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Clothing and Appearance as Perceptual Cues The Relationship of Clothing to the Variables of Social Status, Importance to Adolescents, Social Acceptance, Popularity and Leadership Social Status . . . . . . . . . . Importance of Clothing to Adolescents . Clothing and Social Acceptance . . . . Clothing as Related to Popularity and Leadership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Adolescent Friendship Group and the Devel- Opment of Norms and Standards . . . . . . The Organismic Model of Group Organization The Normative System of a Group . . . . The Effect of Norms on Aesthetic Tastes The Adolescent Friendship Group . . . . Summary and Assumptions from the Literature II. ANALYSIS AND STATEMENT OF THE HYPOTHESES Best-Dressed Rating as a Variable . . . . Popularity as a Variable . . . . . . . . Social Status as a Variable . . . . . . . III C METHODOLOGY 0 O O O O O I O O O O O O O 0 Project Background . . . . . . . . . . . Community Setting . . . . . . . . . . . The Instruments and Administration . . Analytical Tools . . . . . . . . . . . Warner's Index . . . . . . . . . . . Sociometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Research Design . . . . . . . . . . . Examination of the Situational Stories Coding of the Data . . . . . . . . . . Scoring and Statistical Technique . . . . 17 17 19 20 21 25 27 28 30 30 32 35 39 40 41 43 44 44 45 46 46 47 54 54 58 62 Chapter IV. VI. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS AND TESTING OF THE HYPOTHESES O O O O O O I O O O O O O O O O O 0 Review of Rejector and Ostracism Scores and Status, Popularity, and Best-Dressed Ratings . ISC Group Ratings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Popularity and Best-Dressed Scores . . . . . Rejector and Ostracism Scores . . . . . . . . Testing the Hypotheses . . . . . . . . . . . . The "Best¥Dressed" Variable . . . . . . . . . The "Popularity" Variable . . . . . . . . . . The ISC Variable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . COMPARISON AND ANALYSIS OF NINTH AND TWELFTH GRADE RESPONSES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Comparison and Analysis of Responses About Jean Comparison and Analysis of Responses about Michelle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Comparison and Analysis of Responses about Lynn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Comparison and Analysis of "Popular," "Some," and "Other Group" Responses . . . . . . . . . . SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . APPENDIX A: BACKGROUND QUESTIONNAIRE . . . . . . . . APPENDIX B: INTERVIEW SCHEDULE: SITUATIONAL STORIES Ninth Grade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Twelfth Grade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . APPENDIX C: BREAKDOWN OF GROUP ISC, BEST- DRESSED, POPULARITY, REJECTOR AND OSTRACISM SCORES BY INDIVI- DUAL MEMBERS 0 O O O O C C O C O O O O O O C O O O O O Ninth Grade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Twelfth Grade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . APPENDIX D. FINDINGS OF THE NINTH GRADE . . . . . . . 1. Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Jean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2. Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Michelle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3. Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Lynn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4. Comments Concerning the "Judgment by Ap- pearance Syndrome" . . . . . . . . . . . . vi Page 68 69 69 72 75 76 76 81 84 86 87 90 94 97 100 110 119 123 123 125 128 128 135 140 140 145 153 161 Page APPENDIX E. FINDINGS OF THE TWELFTH GRADE . . . . . . 164 1. Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Jean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164 2. Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Michelle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169 3. Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Lynn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177 4. Comments Concerning the "Judgment by Ap- pearance Syndrome" . . . . . . . . . . . . 183 vii Table 1. LIST OF TABLES Page Example of Social Coding . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Group Scores of ISC, Popularity, Best-Dressed and Rejector and Ostracism Scores (Ninth Grade) 77 Group Scores of ISC, Popularity, Best-Dressed and Rejector and Ostracism Scores (Twelfth Grade) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 viii LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. The Evaluation Hypothesis Model as It Fits Into the Review of Literature . . . . . . . . . 37 1A. The Evaluation Hypothesis Model . . . . . . . . 37 2. Modified Evaluation Hypothesis Model . . . . . . 38 3. Reciprocal Friendships of the Ninth Grade Girls in One High School Class Which Became the Senior Class Of 1965 3 o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o 52 4. Reciprocal Friendships of the Twelfth Grade Girls in One High School Senior Class of 1965 . . . . 53 5. Segmental Breakdown of Larger Reciprocal Friend- ship Structures (Ninth Grade . . . . . . . . . . 55 6. Segmental Breakdown of Larger Reciprocal Friend- ship Structures (Twelfth Grade) . . . . . . . . 56 7. An Adaptation of the Evaluation Hypothesis Model, According to Study‘s Research Design . . 64 INTRODUCTION “Clothing and appearance play an important role in our society. They are influential in the formation of im- pressions and opinions about individuals. Mass media, es- pecially magazines and newspapers, reflect this concept fre- quently. The following excerpts are from a "letter to the editors" in a large metropolitan newspaper, written by an adolescent girl: I have something to say to Mrs. Weiss.l Mrs. Weiss is the teacher who doesn't want to put herself on the same level as the kids by wearing their clothes. It doesn't put you on the same level, believe me! . . . Wearing our clothes would only show that you are willing to ac- cept us as people, not just as names in a grade book. You said a teacher should be judged by what is between his ears, not below his neck. That kinda made me grin. Because I'll bet even you as well as 100 per cent of other teachers probably usually judge a Eid when you first see him by what is below the neck! Another individual who voiced her concern over "judg— ment by appearance criteria," was one of the leaders of a Chicago women's liberation organization, who consented to an interview only after the reporter agreed not to describe what she was wearing. She stated, "Women are always being 1The teacher's real name has been changed to Mrs. Weiss by the writer. 2"Mail," The Detroit News, February 19: 1970' "The Other Section," p. 9. classified by the way they look, men by what they do."1 The reporter quipped back, "That's changing. . . . Men are now being classified by the way they look."2 Many note that they see the concept of "clothing im- pressions" in action. A leading economist cautions that one "may discover that in a world where a person's abilities are hard to assess, he is sometimes judged by what he wears,"3 while a "fashion author" reports that a successful fund- raiser of a nationally-known women's organization predicts the size of the donation a woman will give by the clothes she is wearing.4 Finally, singer Johnny Cash, in his pOpular song "What is Truth?" issues the ominous warning that even in the courtroom, appearance may be the prime criterion for judgment.5 Feelings of "clothing judgment," such as those ex- pressed in the preceeding paragraphs, have been the impetus for researchers to explore empirically and scientifically, in recent years, the concept of "clothing impressions." Ryan, one of the first of these researchers, observed, 1Amy Gross, "Women's Lib Loves You," Mademoiselle, February, 1970, p. 286. 21bid. 3James N. Morgan, Consumer Economics (New York: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1955), p. 312. 4Eve Merrian, Figleaf (New York: J. P. Lippincott C00, 1960), p. 60. 5The actual lyrics read, "Although the young man solemnly swore; Nobody seems to hear anymore--It didn't really matter if the truth was there, it was the cut of his clothes and the length of his hair." "Clothing, because it is one of the clues used by people in these first reactions, may therefore play a part in the ac- tual selection of our friends and acquaintances." The scope of this study has been based upon that observation. IIts purpose is to investigate the relationship between var- ious characteristics (social status, popularity, how well dressed) of adolescent peer groups and the rejection of an individual as a friend because of clothing and appearance. 1Mary Shaw Ryan, Clothing: A Study in Human Beha- vior (New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, Inc., 1966), ' p. 8. CHAPTER I REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE This review of literature will discuss the basic theory of social perception; clothing and appearance as per- ceptual cues; the importance of clothing to adolescents; the relationship of clothing and appearance to status and popu- larity; the adolescent friendship group and the deve10pment of group norms. It shall attempt to establish a relation- ship between characteristics and norms of a group to percep- tion and evaluation of individuals by group members. Social.Perception "We select or reject individuals on the basis of our perceptions and the judgment arising from these percep- tions."l What exactly is perceived about a person depends upon two factors: (1) the cues the stimulus person pre- sents and (2) the characteristics and attitudes of the per- ceiver. This study focuses upon (1) clothing and appearance as the cues and (2) friendship group characteristics of the adolescent perceiver as influencing the perception of these cues, and consequently, judgment about and acceptance or ,1 \ .‘134 Stansfeld Sargent and Robert C. Williamson, Social Psychology (New York: The Ronald Press Company, 1966), p. 298. rejection of the individual. Characteristics of the Perceiver Influencing Perception Individuals differ in their sensitivity or vigilance to cues.1 One may perceive a cue another totally bypasses. Berelson and Steiner state: We look at some things, ignore others, and look away from still others ("selective exposure"). Beyond that, only a fraction of those stimuli that have gained ef- fective entry to a recepEor ever reach awareness ( select1ve awareness"). Allport and Kramer's study of anti-Semitism provides an ex- ample. They found that students scoring high on an anti- SemitiSm scale named more faces as "Jewish" when distin- guishing "Jewish faces" in a series of portraits. This was attributed to a response bias or vigilance, since these stu- dents felt a need to make accurate perceptions and were thus more sensitive to cues than non-biased students. Individuals also differ in their perceptual styles. A perceptual style is a reflection of one's point of view of 4 attitudes toward life and the world, and influences how social objects are perceived. Monk and Newcomb's study of 11bid., p. 221. 2Bernard Berelson and Gary Steiner, Human Behavior: An Inventory of Scientific Findings (New York: Harcourt, Brace and World, Inc., 1964), p. 100. 3G. W. Allport and B. M. Kramer, "Some Roots of Social Prejudice," Journal of Psychology, XXII (1946), 9-39. 4Sargentand Williamson, op. cit., p. 222. social factors in perception showed that an individual tends to perceive, to an exaggerated degree, his own opinion in 1 others of his class or affiliation. Three other studies support the concept that perceptual styles influence percep- tion of individuals. In the first, Scodel and Mussen tested the hypothesis that authoritarians, because of their lack of insight into others and their need to consider themselves members of the ingroup, would perceive nonauthoritarian peers to have attitudes and personality characteristics similar to their own with positive results, thus inferring that authoritarian 2 personalities tend toward imperceptiveness. The second, a study concerning monetary value and the perception of per- sons, discovered that the more ethnocentric the student, the more he tended to view negatively both the rich man and the 3 . poor man. The last, an experlment by Bruner and Goodman,4 5 and replicated by Carter and Schooler, indicated that lM. Monk and T. M. Newcomb, "Perceived Consensus and Occupational Classes," American Sociological Review, XXI (1956), 71-79. 2A. Scodel and P. Mussen, "Social Perception of Auth- oritarians and Nonauthoritarians," Journal of Abnormal Social Psychology, XLVI (1953), 181-84. 3Joseph Luft, "Monetary Value and the Perception of Persons," Program of the 63rd Annual Convention of the Ameri- can Psychological Association, The American Psychologist, X (1950), P. 393. 4J. S. Bruner and C. C. Goodman, "Value and Need as Organizing Factors in Perception," Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, XLII (1947), 33-44. 5L. F. Carter and K. Schooler, "Value, Need and Other Factors in Perception," Psychological Review, LVI (1949), 200-7. there is a relationship between socioeconomic status and per- ception. They attributed this to a relationship between the upper and lower classes in the way they regard their roles and statuses in the world. "Many kinds of relatively persistent personality characteristics on the part of the perceiver have been shown to affect his selection among cues presented by other per- sons."1 Bossom and Maslow found that secure individuals made more warm perceptions of people in photographs than 2 the insecure who made more cold perceptions. Other factors play a role in influencing perception, although they cannot be related to particular personality traits or attitudes. Newcomb, Turner and Converse describe the organizing or clustering of traits: Most people have preconceptions to the effect that cer- tain personal characteristics belong together. We tend to organize into categories not only objects and persons but also traits of persons. Such habits of clustering traits may be widely shared among a population of peers or compatriots [italics are the writer's] or may be in- dividually unique. In any case, the effects of such clustering are that once the perceiver has noted a cer- tain characteristic on the part of another person, he is apt to attribute all of the other traits in the cluster to him. lTheodore M. Newcomb, Ralph H. Turner, and Philip C. Converse, Social Psychology: The Study of Human Interaction (New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, Inc., 1965), p. 166. 2J. Bossom and A. H. Maslow, "Security of Judges as a Factor in Impressions of Warmth in Others," Journal of Ab- normal Social Psychology, LXV (1957), 147-48. 3Newcomb, op. cit., p. 164. The associating of traits has been demonstrated by many researchers. Certain key traits have been found to yield many inferences.l Both Asch2 and Kelly3 in separate studies found that the warm or cold variable interjected into a list of descriptive traits about an individual affec- ted the observer's total impressions. Thus the cold or warm variable produced a "halo" effect. Razran demonstrated that the labeling of photographs with various ethnic surnames had a definite effect upon the manner in which these photographs were perceived by subjects since the ethnicity created assoc- iations. Association or clustering of traits is especially notable in the area of clothing and appearance. Clothing and appearance are often linked to psychological traits. For example, people often link together coarse skin and a square jaw with ruthlessness.5 In 1952, Dr. Lowell Kelly's findings lDavid Shapiro, Renato Taguiri, and Jerome S. Bruner, "The Role of Inference in Forming an Impression of a Person," Program of the 63rd Annual Convention of the American Psycho- logical Association, The American Psychologist, X (1955), 392. 2S. E. Asch, "Forming Impressions of Personality," Journal of Abnormal Social Psychology, XLV (1946), pp. 258-90. 3Harold H. Kelly, "The Warm-Cold Variable in First Impressions of Persons," Journal of Personality, XVIII (1950), pp. 7-27. 4Gregory Razran, "Ethnic Dislikes and Stereotypes: A Laboratory Study," Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, VL (1950), 7-27. 5Henry Clay Smith, Sensitivity to People (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1966), Introduction. indicated that college men perceived girls when wearing lip- . . . . l st1ck as less consc1ent1ous and more fr1volous. Form and Stone's study revealed that men associated incompetence with a lawyer casually dressed when in his office,2 while answers to Flaccus' questionnaire indicated that people associate nice clothes with carefulness and responsibility that are carried over into other aspects of life.3 In Secord's study, college freshmen were given per- sonality descriptions of two different hypothetical persons: A. This man is warmhearted and honest. He has a good sense of humor and is intelligent and unbiased in opinion. He is responsible and self-confident with an air of refinement. B. This man is ruthless, brutal. He is extremely hos- tile, quick-tempered, and overbearing. He is well- known for his boorish and vulgar manner, and is a very domineering and unsympathetic person. Students then associated these descriptions with facial char- acteristics, resulting in very different physiognomic ratings. The seven traits showing the greatest difference between the personalities were grooming of hair, waviness of hair, eye 1 W. J. McKeachie, "Lipstick as a Determiner of First Impressions of Personality," Journal of Social Psychology, XXXVI (1952), 241-44. 2 . . . . William Form and Gregory Stone, The Social Signifi- cance of Clothing in Occupational Life, Technical Bulletin 247 (Michigan State University Experiment Station, June, 1955), p. 44. 3Louis W. Flaccus, "Remarks on the Psychology of Clothes," Pedagogical Seminary, XIII (1906), p. 65. 4Paul F. Secord, "Facial Features and Inference Pro- cesses in Interpersonal Perception," Person Perception and Interpersonal Behavior, edited by Renato Tagiuri and Luigi Petrullo (Stanford, California: Stanford University Press, 1958), 305-6. . 10 depth, distance between eyes, width of nose and fullness of lips. ASpects of the observer influence his perception. How the perceptions are evaluated depends upon different in- ferential sets that "orient the observer to draw different kinds of conclusions from the information presented by the stimulus person."l Two of the most salient of these sets are termed the "value-maintenance set" and the "situation- matching set." When the stimulus person is evaluated in terms of a value-maintenance set he is measured against the observer's own personal standards. The observer reviews the stimulus person in terms of how he (stimulus person) will affect the observer's purposes and how the observer will affect him.2 "Judgment is colored in this case by the extent to which the stimulus person promotes or thwarts these standards or values."3 In the situation-matching set, the stimulus person is evaluated in terms of certain generalized norms of moral values 1Edward E. Jones, "Inferential Sets in Social Percep- tion," Program of the 63rd Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, The American Psychologist, X (1955), 393. ‘ 2Hadley Cantril, "The Nature of Social Perception," Social Perception: The Development of Interpersonal Impres— sions, edited by Hans Toch and Henry Clay Smith (Princeton, N. J.: D. Nostrand Company, Inc., 1968), pp. 3-9. 3Jones, op. cit., p. 393. 11 which are presumed by the observer to hold in the situa- 1 tion. Sherif found in a laboratory experiment that group norms influenced perception and judgment of a light movement and theorized its applicability to social perception.2 These sets may seem similar in context. Their dif- ference lies in the fact that the former set implies indivi- dually-based judgment (personal standards) while the latter involves situationally applicable generalized norms. Thus it could be inferred that each individual has a unique value- maintenance set, but may share a common situation-matching set with a group or groups of individuals. Summary Perception is influenced by the perceiver's sensiti- vity or vigilance to cues, his perceptual style and persis- tent personality traits. In order to evaluate them, he fits these perceptions into his value-maintenance set or situation- matching set. He associates or clusters one trait with another, frequently associating appearance and clothing with particular psychological traits. This leads the review of literature to the other factor in the phenomena of social per- ception--the cues presented by the stimulus individual. 1 . Ibid. 2Muzafer Sherif, "A Study of Some Social Factors in Perception," Archives of Psychology, No. 187 (1935), pp. 5- 60. ,12 Clothing and Appearance as Perceptual Cues Clothing and appearance are perceptual cues. Stone views appearance as non-verbal communication,l while Goffman sees it as part of the "personal front," conveying forma- 2 tion about the "performer's" status. Clothing and appearance are especially important in the assessment of an individual "when we do not have much information, where the interaction is minimized, and where there is not much structure to the relationship." Sebald sees clothing as holding special communication significance for the adolescent: Clothing is a Visual means of communication. Teen-agers are able to categorize peOple by clothing they wear and are able to identify in-group members by their appearance. Once clothing has given a teen-ager an idea of the social identity of another person, he is able to pattern his behavior and responses accordingly. Clothing is a sub- tle and meaningful way of communicating to otflers the kind of role a person wishes to play in life. lGregory‘P. Stone, "Appearance and the Self," Dress, Adornment and the Social Order, edited by Mary Ellen Roach and Joanne Bubolz Eicher (New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1965), p. 220. 2Erving Goffman, The Presentation of Self in Every- day Life (Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1959(, P. 24. 3Paul F. Secord, "Social Factors in Person Percep- tion," Proceedings of National Clothing and Textiles Seminar of College Teachers of Clothing and Textiles, Reno, Nevada, August, 1965, p. 54. 4Hans Sebald, Adolescence: A Sociological Analysis (New York: Appleton Century-Crofts, 1968), p. 227. 13 Clothing plays a greater role as perceptual cues in the assessment of strangers than of friends,1 and clothing and accessories are more important factors in the judgment 2 than the head-expression complex. Many people regard dress and appearance as indicative of deeper psychological traits or abilities. Lones' experiment of student evaluation of a new instructor (herself) found that students felt that her appearance was an indication of her teaching ability. A total of 68% indicated that their faith in the in- structor's ability to teach clothing selection was in- fluenced by clothing and grooming. 80% of those who did mention clothes or grooming discussed the instructor's ability to teach or to discipline. In all, 90.8% of the students, as they tried to express in writing their first impressions of the instructor, seemed to relate their opinion of her ability to the way she looked.3 Two studies show that change of dress or costume creates Opinion changes by observers of the stimulus person. Douty's experiment involved the photographing of four models in four different costumes and a control smock. Judging groups rated three of the four models differently for each 1This was found to hold true in three studies: Wilhelmina E. Jacobson, "First Impressions of Classmates," Journal of Applied Psychology, XXIX, No. 2 (1945), pp. 142- 55; Thomas Ford Hoult, "Experimental Measurement of Clothing as a Factor in Some Social Ratings of Selected American Men," American Sociological Review, XIX (1954), pp. 324-28; Thomas E. Lasswell and Peter F. Parshall, "The Perception of Social Class from Photographs," Sociology and Social Research, XLV (1961), PP. 407-14. 2 Lasswell and Parshall, op. cit., p. 412. 3 - . Lela Lillian Lones, "Clothing and First Impre351ons, Journal of Home Economics, XLV (1953), pp. 741-42. 14 costume on the Yang and Yinl personality scale. "It was con- cluded that clothing did have an effect on impressions of personal traits of some people."2 In Ryan's research study, six girls appeared before a high school class of different occasions. Each time the girls were rated as to personal characterisitcs. The second time the girls appeared before the class, five of the girls had changed their previous costumes, while one had not. The class was told that there had been misunderstanding during the previous evaluation, and the class was asked to rate the girls again as to persOnal characteristics. The girls who had changed clothing were rated differently than they had been before, while the girl who had dressed the same had similar ratings. "The dissimilar ratings for the girls who were dressed differently indicates that the ratings on personality traits were influenced by the subjects' clothing." Perhaps more than personality, clothing is used as an indicator of status. Veblen stated "Our apparel is always in evidence and affords an indication of our pecuniary standing lBell Northrup, "An Approach to the Problem of Costume and Personality," Art Education Today (published by Teachers' College, Columbia University), (1936), pp. 94-104. A Yang personality implies that one is forceful, dynamic, assertive, self-assured, and dignified, while a Yin personality is gentle, receptive, delicate, submissive, and warm. 2Helen I. Douty, "Influence of Clothing on Perception of Persons," Journal of Home Economics, LV (1963): P. 200. 3Mary Shaw Ryan, Clothing: A Study in Human Behavior (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc., 1966), p. 12. 15 to all observers at the first glance." Lasswell and Parshall found that a sample of raters made consistent judgments of the social classes of a number of men whose clothed bodies (without heads) were shown in photographs.2 Besides changes in personality traits, changes in costumes of the models resulted in changes of status ratings in Douty's experiment.3 In 1961, Kittles found that parti- cular items of clothing elicited different status evaluations. "Ragged coats, unpressed skirts, dirty cotton dresses, gaudy prints, poorly fitted dresses, run-down shoes, plaid and print combinations and dresses that were too long" indicated a low status position while "fur coats, fancy hats and latest style hats, expensive jewelry, well-tailored suits, long gloves, high fashion cocktail dresses, fur pieces and stoles, Paris original dresses and suits, high fashion long evening gowns, spike heels, and cashmere coaté‘indicated a high 4 status position. Rosencranz's research in clothing symbol- 1Thorstein Veblen, The Theory of the Leisure Class (New York: Macmillan Co., 1899, reprinted by Modern Library, 1934): p. 167. 2Lasswell and Parshall, op. cit., pp. 407-8. 3Douty, op. cit. 4 Emma Kittles, "The Importance of Clothing as a Status Symbol among College Students," unpublished dissertation, Ohio State University, 1961, pp. 48-50. l6 ism, using a modified projective technique, the Thematic Aperception Test, supports, perhaps more objectively,l the concept of clothing as status cues. She administered the TAT test, consisting of seven drawings of clothing incon- gruities to 82 married women of a small Michigan town. The drawings elicited responses of social status, economic sta- tus, and occupation along with age, sex, appropriateness, etc.,2 indicating that "clothing is important in determining the role and status of unknown persons."3 Finally, Hoult concluded from his study that clothes affect the evaluation of unknown persons and that attractive clothing brings about an overall association of attractive- ness . 254 students rated heads and clothing of unknown men as to attractiveness. After a month a control group rated the same pictures, but the experimental group was given pictures on which the most attractive head had been super- imposed on the least attractive of ten outfits from the previous ratings. Results showed that change in ratings made by the experimental group was associated positively with the ranking of the clothing outfits by the ten in- dependent judges. Thus, the higher ranked clothing was consistently associated with the men who rose with the men that lost in rank. 1This experiment differs from the others in that it does not directly ask the subjects to give status ratings. Any status ratings in this study are responses to broad open- ended questions. 2Mary Lou Rosencranz, "Clothing Symbolism," Journal of Home Economics, LVI (January, 1962), pp. 18-22. 3Mary Lou Rosencranz, "The Application of a Projective Technique for Analyzing Clothing Awareness, Clothing Symbols, and the Range of Themes Associated with Clothing Behavior," unpublished dissertation, Michigan State University, 1960. 4 . Hoult, op. cit., pp. 326-28. 17 Summary Clothing plays an important role as perceptual cues that relay information about the wearer to the perceiver. Personality assessment, status evaluation, and impressions of overall attractiveness are influenced by clothing. The Relationship of Clothing to the Variables of (1) 800151 Status, (2) Importance to Adolescents, (3) Social Acceptance, and (4) PopuIarity The Relationship of Clothing to Social Status Although there have only been a few research studies in this area, there are indications that there is a relation- ship between Socioeconomic status and clothing awareness and importance given clothing. Vener found support1 for his hypothesis that "the degree of importance which a person places upon clothing will be related to that individual's social status,"2 while Form and Stone found that white collar workers attached greater importance to clothing than did 3 manual workers. High school g1rls 1n upper soc1oeconom1c levels attributed higher prestige value to being a "good 1Vener had stronger support for his hypothesis in the medium-high status group. Clothing interest "seemed to de- crease in importance for those in the highest status categor- ies," perhaps due to the fact that high status individuals had already attained their status goals and no longer needed clothing as a symbol.’ 2Arthur M. Vener, "Stratification Aspects of Clothing Importance," unpublished Master's thesis, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Michigan State College, 1953, p. 83. . ’ 3Forn and Stone, 1955, op. cit., p. 12. 18 dresser" than did either boys or girls of lower social classes in Anastasi and Miller's study. Rosencranz, in her 1948 study, found that peOple in higher income brackets had more clothing interest than those in lower ones;2 and in 1960, in her administration of TAT tests, she found that women demonstrating the greatest cloth- ing awareness "were of the upper social class, belonged to a greater number of organizations, and had a higher income, subscribed to a greater number of magazines, had higher ver- bal intelligence and were wives of men in the white collar occupational group."3 However, Young found that no relation- ship existed between interest in clothing and social class4 in her study of adolescent boys and girls; but did find a relationship between social status and clothing management of adolescent girls, with girls of the upper socio-economic class expressing greater concern for care and management of their clothing. lA. Anastasi, and S. Miller, "Adolescent Prestige Fac- tors in Relation to Scholastic and Socio-economic Factors," Journal of Social Psychology, XXIX (1949), pp. 43-80. 2MaryLou Rosencranz, "A Study of Interest in Cloth- ing Among Selected Groups of Married and Unmarried Young Women," unpublished Master's thesis, Department of Textiles, Clothing and Related Arts, Michigan State College, 1948. .3Mary Lou Rosencranz, op. cit., 1960 dissertation. 4Young used the Hollingshead Index of social status, based on the occupational role of the head of the household and his level of education. 5Mary Jane Young, "The Relationship of Peer Acceptance and the Personal Appearance of Adolescents, unpublished Master's thesis, Michigan State University, 1967, pp. 61-62. 19 Summary Although there is a scarcity of research in this area, the literature indicates a possible relationship between socio- economic status and clothing awareness and clothing importance. Importance of Clothing to Adolescence "Good looks are rated increasingly important during 1 the adolescent period." Clothing becomes a primary con- cern.2 To adults, adolescents may spend a disproportionate amount of time worrying3 or daydreaming4 about appearance. 1Dorothy Rodgers, The Psychology of Adolescence (New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1962), p. 343. Among high school and college girls questioned in Ryan's study, 80% felt that clothing was important, while only 3% stated it did not affect them at all. Mary Shaw Ryan, "Psychological Effects of Clothing III: Report of' Interviews with a Selected Sample of College Women," Cornell University, Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin No. 900 (Ithaca, N. Y., 1953). In Silverman's study, three-fourths ' of the girls questioned said the right clothes were necessary to happiness. Sylvia Silverman, "Clothing and Appearance," The Adolescent: A Book of Readings, ed. Jerome Seidman (New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1953), pp. 242-46. 3Paul H. Landis, in his Adolescence and Youth: The Process of Maturing (New York: McGraw-Hill Company, Inc., 1953), charts the responses of teen-age girls as to their problems or worries. 17.8% replied that they worried about appearance; 21.3% thought that their under- or over- weight was a problem; and 15.4% and 12.2% worried about poor complexion and not being very attractive, respectively. Cole, in her in-' quiry of student problems, recorded 39% of respondents con- cerned about posture, 16% worried about what to wear, 15% men- tioned concern over not knowing how to select clothes for their figures, and 38% wanted to be more attractive to the opposite sex. Luella Cole, Psychology of Adolescence (New York: Rinehart and Company, Inc., 1954), pp. 248-49. Study on daydreams of college students revealed that 89% of undergraduate and 94% of graduate men and 95%-of' 20 about appearance. ‘Hurlock sums up the adolescent's rationale for his preoccupation with appearance: The adolescent learns from experience in social rela- tionships that personal appearance plays an important role in social acceptability with members of both sexes. Social success is to a large extent influenced by the appearance the individual makes. To be popular with both sexes, the individual must make a good appearance and must cinform to the pattern that is acceptable to the group. Thus, the adolescent views a good personal appearance as a vehicle for social acceptance and popularity. ClothingAand Social Acceptance By an evaluation of personal appearance of the sub- jects and administration of sociometric tests, Cannon con- cluded that in girls, "personal appearance bears a signifi- cant relationship to social acceptance during the junior and senior high period."2 Tyron reported that one of the qualities 15 year-old girls list as important for acceptance is being "attractive to boys,"3 while Dillion found that highly accepted adolescent boys showed greater conformity to the modal pattern of dress than those of low social ac- undergraduate and 96% of graduate women reported that they had at one time or another experienced dreams of physical attractiveness. Floyd L. Ruch, Psychology and Life(Chicago: Scott, Foresman, 5th ed., 1958): P. 175. l Elizabetthurlock, Adolescent Development (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1949), p. 240. 2Kenneth L. Cannon, Ruth Staples, and Irene Carlson, "Personal Appearance as a Factor in Social Acceptance," Journal of Home Economics, Vol. 44, p. 712. 3C. M. Tyron, "Evaluation of Adolescent Personality by Adolescents," Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, IV, No. 4, 1939. 21 ceptability.1 Finding a relationship between peer accep- tance and conformity to the clothing mode, Smucker pointed out the possibility of the clothing mode being a norm ac- companied by the sanction of peer acceptance.2 However, Young,3 in her study found no significant positive relation- ship between peer acceptance and personal appearance ratings4 of adolescent girls. Unattractive appearance may contribute to social isolation. Kuhlen and Collister, in their investigation into sociometric status of high school dropouts found that ninth graders who were not well—adjusted socially tended to. be unattractive, poorly groomed and lacking in social know- 1Mary Louise Dillion, "The Modal Pattern of Dress and Its Relationship to Peer Acceptance Among Eighth Grade Boys," unpublished Master's thesis, Michigan State Univer- sity, 1963. 2Betty Voron Smucker, "Conformity to and Awareness of the Clothing Mode Related to Peer Acceptance of Adoles- cent Boys and Girls," unpublished master's thesis, Michigan State University, 1969. 3Young, op. cit., p. 71. 4 . . Subjects were rated by adult observers on the cr1- teria of harmony, becomingness, neatness, appropriateness, hair, and make-up. 5Appearance ratings made by adult observers may have been made in light of adult norms and values, and may have differed from actual peer assessment of appearance, thus ex- plaining the lack of relationship between personal appearance ratings and peer acceptance. 6Hurlock, op. cit., p. 201. 22 how,1 while Sebald discovered that "the third most frequently mentioned ground for unpopularity referred to appearance and specified that wearing of 'wrong clothes' or 'being sloppily dressed' made for an 'oddball' or 'square.'"2 In their study of Sioux adolescents dropping out from high school, Was and Wax3 cite that inadequate clothing is the most com- mon reason given by both parents and daughters for the drop- 4 out of the latter from high school. The Relationship of Clothing to Pppularity and Leadership The more prestigious or popular the group, the more appearance tends to be a factor in acceptance. Gottlieb and Ramsey state, In many high schools and colleges students are judged' by their visible presentation of self. Entrance into the more exclusive or prestige cliques is determined not so much by academic or intellectual qualigies as by how the young person looks and what he wears. 1R. G. Kuhlen and E. G. Collister, "Sociometric Status of Sixth and Ninth—graders who Fail to Finish High School, Educational and Psychological Measurement, Vol. 12 (1952), pp. 632-37. 2Sebald, op. cit., p. 237. 3Murray Wax and Rosalie Wax, "The Matter of Clothing," in Roach and Eicher, op. cit., pp. 260-61. 4Wax and Wax believe that the reason of inadequate clothing is merely a superficial manifestation of the differ- ences in background of the Sioux adolescent from the others in the school. 5David Gottlieb and Charles E. Ramsey, The American Adolescent (Homewood, 111.: The Dorsey Press, Inc., 1964), p. 34. 23 In Loomrie's study, adolescent girls expressed the feeling that appearance was a factor in being accepted into a club. Coleman found that good looks and clothes were the second and third2 factors mentioned more often for getting into the "leading crowd,"3 while Bonney describes the most popular children as conforming to group norms of dress and grooming.4 Van Staden found a "positive relationship between wearing of prestige clothing and leadership for both boys and girls and a positive relationship between wearing of prestige clothing and popularity for girls."5 In Cannon's study, researchers also found a singificant relationship between personal appearance and popularity for high school girls.6 (However, reporting opposing results, Evan's re- search indicated that subjects who conformed the most to lPhyllis M. Loomrie, "Social Acceptance and Its Re- lationship to Appearance and Selection of Clothing by Teen- age Girls," unpublished Master's Thesis, Southern Illinois University, 1964, p. 39. The most frequently mentioned factor was "person- ality." 3James S. Coleman, The Adolescent Society (New York: The Free Press of Glencoe, 1961), p. 37. 4M. E. Bonney, "Popular and Unpopular Children: A Sociometric Study," Sociometry Monograph, No. 9 (New York: Beacon House, 1947). 5Fracina Johanna van Staden, "The Relationship of Prestigious Clothing to Acceptance by the Peer Group of Adolescent Boys and Girls," unpublished Master's Thesis, Michigan State University, 1970. 6Cannon, op. cit., p. 710. Rial patterns 0 Criteria observes: It 15 a gene their leader to be repres proud. This must be beau of hairdress tion about t looking, mus well groomed Cole views the " "average or bett cressed (by Stan features , body b SUITE. 3 ClOthing f .or pepulari ty 0 1. «l shed standards APPEaranCe is as UErha . 4. DS' a O OVQr- all re ture SI theSe Slip 24 modal patterns of dress were the least popular students.1) Criteria for leadership involve appearance. Hurlock observes: It is a generally accepted fact among adolescents that their leaders must have a good appearance. They want to be represented by individuals of whom they can be proud. This does not mean that the adolescent leader must be beautiful or handsome, must wear extreme styles of hairdress or costly clothing, but there is no ques- tion about the fact that the leader must be nice- looking, must wear becoming stylish clothes and must be well groomed. Cole views the "necessary traits" of an adolescent leader as "average or better attractiveness, well and appropriately dressed (by standards of the group to be led), good voice, 3 features, body build, and clothes typical of the group." Summary Clothing and appearance are important to the adoles- cent. The majority of literature indicates that criteria for popularity or leadership demands conformity to estab- lished standards of-dress and appearance. An unattractive appearance is associated with social isolation. Clothing, perhaps, as according to Coleman, may be overemphasized: "the over-all responses4 . . . suggest that in adolescent cul- tures, these superficial external attributes of clothes and lEvelyn Evans, "Motivations Underlying Clothing Selec- tion and Wearing," Journal of Home Economics, LVI (December, 1964), pp. 739-43. 2Hurlock, op. cit, p. 198. 3Cole, op. cit, p. 265. 4Responses were to questions concerning the most im- portant attribute needed in becoming popular. good looks do j cirls come to ireortanr basi: The A: be ve The frie cribed by a var peer group, pee researchers and that the adoles plays a major I hood and provid The adol. ‘3: relationship (1) the est. SPEleiC 111 messing Wh,‘ tlclpc‘mt, 25 good looks do pervade the atmosphere to the extent that girls come to feel that this is the only basis or the most important basis on which to excel." The Adolescent Friendship Group and the Development of Norms and Standards The friendship group of the adolescent has been des- cribed by a variety of terms--clique, crowd, reference group, peer group, peer culture, adolescent subculture, by various researchers and educators. However, it is generally agreed that the adolescent friendship group, in the broadest sense, plays a major role in the transition from childhood to adult- hood and provides in varying degrees, guides for behavior. The adolescent friendship group may be best understood in relationship to the function of the adolescent subculture: (l) the establishment of common values and norms, (2) a specific lingo not shared with the larger culture ex- pressing what is of particular significance to the par- ticipant, (3) a common style of behavior, including the observance of fads, (4) standards specifying the right appearance in terms of dress, grooming, make-up, etc., (5) a feeling of belonging, thinking of one's peer group in terms of "we" instead of "they," (6) an understanding of status relations, i.e., the existence of a working order of social positions that, at the minimum, clari- fies 1eader-follower relationships, (8) gratification of specific geeds for which the larger culture does not provide. Sebald states that subcultures exist within subcultures4 and 1Coleman, op. cit., p. 52. 2 Sebald, op. cit., p. 199. 3Ibid., p. 206. 4 Ibid., p. 205. :tu-s a friend in the adoles ship group wc debatable, b: vior, the ful For pt be used to ex following ope Group--a dividuals and role aset of 0f indivi t0 the gr Norm-an 1 Value-mid, a unit I t: NormatiVe should fee and grOuP Berliati0n_ 26 thus a friendship group could be viewed as a subculture with- in the adolescent subculture. Whether any particular friend- ship group would fulfill all of the subcultural functions is debatable, but in using the organismic model of group beha- vior, the fulfillment of the first function is assumed. For purposes of this study, the organismic model will be used to explain the development of group standards with the following operational definitions: Group--a social unit which consists of a number of in- dividuals who stand in (more or less) definite status and role relationships to one another and which possess a set of values or norms of its own regulating behavior of individual members at least in matters of consequence to the group.1 Norm--an expectation. It establishes what a member should do and acts as 3 standard against which actual behavior is evaluated. Value--idea about what is most desirable for group, as a unit, to be and become. Normative system--the set of shared ideas (conscious and unconscious) about how persons as group members should feel, and what they should do under given cir- cumstances; ideas about what the interaction system and group emotion should be.4 Deviation--nonconformity to the norms. 1Muzafer and Carolyn W. Sherif, An Outline of Social Psychology (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1956), p. 144. Abraham Zalenznik and David Moment, The Dynamics of' Interpersonal Behavior (New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1964), p. 103. 3 - . Theodore Mills, The Sociology of Small Groups (Englewood Cliffs, N. J.: Prentice Hall, Inc., 1967), p. 58. 4 Ibid., p. 95. 5 Charles E. King, The Sociology of Small Groups: A Handbook of Theory and Experiment (New York: Pageant Press, 1963) , p. 55. 13:5 study, a norms is not ;: up, W111 1 sprent and e x« Accord. a4" w thion, tne g; Mills 27 This study, although recognizing that the development of norms is not the exclusive nor the only function of the group, will limit its scope of group functions to the devel- opment and execution of group norms. The Organismic Model of Group Organization According to the organismic model of group organi- zation, the group is like an organism. It forms, grows, and reaches a state of maturity. It begins with a set of constituent elements--individuals with certain personalities, certain needs, ideas, poten- tialities, limitations; and in the course of develop- ment evolves a particular pattern of behavior, a set of indigenqus norms, a body of beliefs, a set of values, and so on. Each individual brings into the group his own par- ticular needs, wants, ideas, feelings, etc. The personal traits of an individual group member merge with personal traits of other members, and the merger grows and finally reaches maturity. Maturation, in this case may be viewed as the establishment of group boundaries or formation of group character which influence the evolution of group norms (val- ues and beliefs). These norms are group-oriented and not individualis- tic in nature, since they are a synthesis and modification of many individuals' ideas. This does not mean that the indivi- dual does not still hold individual norms, values, and be- liefs, for he does; but it means that in situations relevant 1 Mills, op. cit., p. 13. to the group, he ‘ rd Sherif state . then a number for which the lished ways 0 them and a se relationships [this may hold e5] for it is constan' gradually takes 0: eoerging adulthooc msrructured situa mr to the group, .: . . o. the group r151r M., . ...e Normative Sv st The normati 3ust norms. It I T .t consists of- (l) norms (2) by implic (3) the order (4) by implic' (5) the bounr: QIOUP cor (5) the arra: 28 to the group, he will rely upon the group norms. Sherif and Sherif state it thus: When a number of individuals interact facing problems for which they do not have ready-made solutions or estab— lished ways of behaving, a set of reciprocates among them and a set of standards develop Ehat regulate their relationships and modes of behavior. (This may hold especially true for the adolescent group, for it is constantly confronted with new situations as it gradually takes on the responsibilities and problems of emerging adulthood.) They also see, in confrontation of unstructured situations, norms established which are pecu- liar to the group, and the norms of the various individuals of the group rising toward a common norm. The Normative System of a Group The normative system of a group refers to more than just norms. It represents a network of overlapping ideas. It consists of: (l) norms (2) by implication, the definitions of deviance (3) the order of importance of the various norms (4) by implication, the seriousness of deviant acts (5) the boundaries of the norms (defining what is of group concern and what is of private concern) (6) the arrangement according to which norms, sanction lSherif and Sherif, op. cit., p. 145. 2Ibid., p. 257. and are The normatiw nor need it 1 actual bebav; light when a meted out. 5 to group nor-r tive or rega1 ‘50 the persie trad-288, exi ihdividual f1 course 0: fun or not a 91:01.] fluence his b \ 1 . M111 29 and the boundaries of the normative system itself are to be legitimately altered.1 The normative system of a group cannot be observed directly, nor need it be stated to exist, for a norm is an idea, not actual behavior.2 The existence of a norm only comes to light when a member deviates and observable punishment3 is meted out. Shibutani states that an individual's adherence to group norms is maintained by sanctions which may be posi- tive or negative in nature.4 "The pressure that is supplied to the persistently deviating person is rejection. This os- tracizes, exiles and ridicules the person. It excludes the individual from participation or restricts his social inter- course or functioning in the group."5 Regardless of whether or not a group member obeys the norms completely, ”they in- fluence his behavior and thinking."6 Norms are the basic 'lMills, op. cit., p. 145. 21sec. 3George Homans, The Human Group (New York: Harcourt, Brace, and World, Inc., 1950), p. 123, believes that norms cannot exist without punishment, while Festinger.explains the influence of norms in terms of the individual's desire to avoid "cognitive dissonance” in his relations with a group, for knowledge of differences is painful to both himself and group members. Leon Festinger, A Theory of Cognitive Disson- ancc (Evanston, 111.: Row, Peterson, 1957): PP. 74-78.. 4Tamotsu Shibutani, Society and Personality (Engle- wood Cliffs, N. J.: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1961), PP- 56-57. 5King, op. cit., p. 55. , 6Kingsley Davis, Human Society (New York: The Mac- millan Ccmnanv. 19491. n. 79- components comparison plays as b the group E pleasing t Sign, prep the prevai It is partly enviro our su societ; for a . accept. Th1 StaIIdards ; "DEViatiOn ostraCiSm . v Th %5 Set; \ 1 JO. Groups (We, 2 30 components in the "comparison function" of a group. The comparison function of a group is the function that the group plays as being a standard or reference point against which 1 the group member can evaluate himself and evaluate others. The Effect of Norms on Aesthetic Tastes. (What is pleasing to the eye is not in whole determined by line, de- sign, proportion, etc., but in a large part influenced by the prevailing norms of the time. It is common knowledge that our aesthetic tastes are partly determined by norms that prevail in our social environment. As there are norms about the fashions of our suits and dresses, there are prevalent norms in society that hold certain aesthetic products in fashion for a given time, short or long; wide variations from accepted standards are considered ugly or unpleasant. The adolescent subculture may observe aesthetic standards independent of those of the society at large, which are translated into modes of dress and grooming. "Deviation from the accepted mode may be punished in various ways, ranging from name-calling to physical violence or O 3 ostrac1sm." The Adolescent Friendship Group Sebald states that the adolescent friendship group, like other groups interacting over a period of time, possesses 1Joachim Israel, Self-Evaluation and Rejection in Groups-(Sweden: Almquist and Wiksells, 1956), pp. 133-34. 2Muzafer Sherif, The Psychology of Social Norms (New York: Harper and Row Publishers, 1966): p. 62. 3seba1d, op. cit., p. 206. a blueprint recurrent p: dis-table be? conscious at “which are e by which er; node." Nev... oornunicate of reference The ential, sin: to be accept dards_ Area are "matters to join, ho“ to dreSS and Gen group G to peer rela 31 a blueprint for behavior "that helps to clarify and expedite recurrent problem—solving, thus developing orderly and pre- dictable behavior patterns."1 Part of the process is the conscious and unconscious formulation of norms and values, "which are emotional commitments to relevant group standards by which experience and objects are judged and choices are made.-"2 Newcomb maintains that when individuals in a group communicate with each other they tend to use the same frame of reference in making judgments.3 The adolescent friendship group appears to be influ- ential, since the adolescent is very other-directed,4 wants to be accepted, and thus necessarily conforms to group stan- dards. Areas where friendship groups are most influential are "matters concerning what to wear to a party, what clubs to join, how to act when out with gang, and above all, how 5 Thus this indicates that the adoles- to dress and groom." cent group dominates behavior "in those areas most seminal to peer relations and appearance."6 1 Ibid., p. 235. 2 Ibid. '3Newcomb, op. cit., pp. 264-69. 4The Purdue Surveys found that 51% of the respondents "try very hard to do anything that will please friends," and 38% thought that "there is nothing worse than being considered an oddball by other people." Sebald, op. cit., p. 241. 51bid. 6Ernest A. Smith, American Youth Culture (New York: The Free Press of Glencoe, 1962), p. 7. The adolesc subculture Wlthin plained in terms c tion. Norms evol': ideas, needs, feel! behavior. Group F related to peer r. Binary and Assam: Social per cues presented by fected by the Cha tual cues of clot in the formation tend to create as +‘ . ~39 Stimulus ll’ld‘ 51; Ice literature 32 Summary - The adolescent friendship group can be viewed as a subculture within the adolescent subculture, and can be ex- plained in terms of the organismic model of group organiza- tion. Norms evolve out of the merger of individual members ideas, needs, feelings, and influence the group members' behavior. Group norms are important especially in matters related to peer relations and appearance. Summary and Assumptions from the Literature Social perception is not only influenced by the cues presented by the stimulus person or object, but is af- fected by the characteristics of the perceiver. The percep- tual cues of clothing and appearance are very influential in the formation of opinions about the stimulus person and tend to create associations in the perceiver's mind about the stimulus individual. How aware the perceiver is of the clothing cues presented may be related to his social class, - since literature indicates that members of the higher socio- economic classes place greater importance on clothing than those of the lower class. In the adolescent subculture, "nice" clothing and a good appearance are necessary criteria for popularity or leadership. They are alos influential in the social accep- tance of an individual, for the poorly dressed adolescent is regarded as a social outcast. The adolescent friendship group serves as a compari- son point by :herse lves . coagulate; an oulated, whic a norm is vic aware of its groups have t and grooming . From following ass 1. Chara Group the c Peopl Cleth infiu Stimu PerSo: 33 son point by which the members evaluate others, as well as themselves. The needs and ideas of the individual members coagulate; and norms are consciously and unconsciously for- mulated, which are ideas or guides for behavior. Only when a norm is violated and punishment follows, is an outsider aware of its existence. One of the areas where friendship groups have the greatest jurisdiction is that of clothing and grooming. From the review of the literature, we can make the following assumptions: 1. Characteristics of the perceiver (or the perceiver's group) affect perception--what cues are noted, how the cues are organized, etc. 2. People tend to associate one trait with another.- 3. Clothing and appearance, as perceptual cues, are influential in the formation of Opinions about the stimulus person. 4. Persons of higher socio-economic status tend to be more aware of and place greater emphasis upon cloth- ing than persons of lower status. 5. Clothing and appearance are important factors in the social acceptability of an adolescent. 6. Popular adolescents and adolescent leaders conform closely to the "peer" standards of dress and grooming. 7. The adolescent friendship group influences the be- havior of the individual member in the area of dress and grooming. 10. In any iod Of Of the Violat in the 10. 34 In any group of individuals interacting over a per- iod of time, group norms develop out of the merger of the members' feelings, ideas, needs, etc. Group norms hold is situations of relevance to the group, superseding individual norms. Violation of a group norm may result in punishment in the way of ridicule, ostracism, or rejection. FIO] we can draw group and ti Since the so Within the c may be expec Pearance of "Character" individual 1; also be eVal tion). which lection of t This hYPOthesisu 1 degree to Wh. function of 1 CHAPTER II ANALYSIS AND STATEMENT OF THE HYPOTHESES From the review of literature, and the assumptions, we can draw some inferences about the adolescent friendship group and the adolescent's perception of clothing cues. Since the area of clothing and appearance appears to be within the domain of the adolescent friendship group, it may be expected that a group member's perception of the ap- pearance of a stimulus individual would be affected by the "character" of his group.1 Not only would the stimulus individual be perceived in terms of the group but he would also be evaluated by the group standards (comparison func- tion), which would ultimately lead to the acceptance or re- jection of the individual. This reaSoning falls in line with the "evaluation hypothesis" model. "Evaluation hypotheses propose that the degree to which a person is liked or disliked will be a joint function of the actual information presented by or about him 1The individual may personally possess the group "character" or characteristics of the group, since the qual- ities of individual members merge to form the group char- acter. For example, in a "popular" group, the individual member may be individually "popular" in his own right, while another member may be regarded as a "member of the popular group." 35 and the set A di how the eval this study's of literatur characterist standards an Group norms serving as c for situatio tion or what nation Ultlm By v. Sisting of ti dent Variabl. liking Or (11: Context Of t: infol'mation . tion Circle. situation~mat of liking Or If t] stant fOr al. 36 and the set which the perceiver has adopted." A diagram was constructed by the researcher to show how the evaluation hypothesis model, which is the basis of this study's hypotheses, fits into the context of the review of literature. (See Figure l.) The diagram shows that group characteristics influence both the development of norms and standards and perception such as the selection of cues. Group norms and standards, in turn, influence evaluation by serving as comparison points (comparison function) or guides for situational behavior (situation matching set). Percep- tion or what is perceived also influences evaluation. Eval- uation ultimately leads to positive or negative sanctions. By viewing the evaluation hypothesis model as con- sisting of three variables information presented (indepen- dent variable) set (independent variabld, and degree of liking or disliking, the variables can be fitted into the context of the review of literature. The first variable, information or cues presented is placed next to the percep- tion circle. The second variable, "set," is placed at the situation-matching set rectangle, while the last, "degree of liking or disliking" fits inside the evaluation circle. If the cues (information presented) are held con- stant for all groups, the degree of liking or disliking (dependent variable) will be in direct relationship to the 1Edward E. Jones and John W. Thibaut, "Interaction Goals as Bases of Inference in Interpersonal Perception," in Tagiuri and Petrullo, op. cit., p. 167. ,{ER 1 r ception e 1 (Selection: 0‘ aniza ion 37 FIGURE I. THE EVALUATION HYPOTHESIS MODEL AS IT FITS INTO THE REVIEW OF LITERATURE. FIGURE IA. HYPOTHESIS MODEL. EVALUATION Individual member with personal needs, ideas fl Influences Group "Co "Comparing the béhavIOr of an individual to the stan- dards of the group. arison Function"-- 9 ' . I I I I I u y ! "Situatign_Matchi 'Set"--the process of the perceiver eval- uating the stimulus person and deciding if his behavior {matches' the relevant norms in the ”situ- ation." " set (independent In order 1 exisrence Of a r4 elimination and evaluation model holding. the cues formation about degree of liking be directly rel. situation-match parison functio irons, they are norms, and (2) Manipule for "Situation. aEPEars thus; Grouo Char 38 set (independent variable). In order to achieve a working hypothesis and test the existence of a relationship by means of measurable variables, examination and substitution of the parts of the interaction— evaluation model are needed. We have established that by holding the cues constant, that is, presenting identical in- formation about a stimulus person to all perceivers, that the degree of liking or disliking (acceptance or rejection) will be directly related to the situation-matching set. The situation-matching set occupies space adjacent to the "com- parison function." Although these two concepts are not synon- ymous, they are both composed of two parts: (1) standards or norms, and (2) evaluation. Manipulating a substitution of "comparison function" for "situation-matching set," the hypothesis relationship appears thus: Group Characteristics --) Norms, Stand:§ds l \ Held Con- Figure 2. Iisliking Modified Evaluation Hypothesis Model 1Information presented or cues may be distorted by the perceiver's selective and organizational processes. How- ever this should not be considered crucial in this model since the forces (characteristics or "character") influencing the selective processes are the same as the variable which has been established as directly related to the outcome or de- pendent variable. 2Substituted for "situation matching set." _———-—— M - - ...e -' - rash...“ u the concePt ' tativelyr how or standards I review Of lite were products The degree to teristic is me the hypotheses degree to Whlt tic, norms an: the resulting Cf llklng or C proval Or (1185 no“ or punis variables of 1 popularity wl +L _ 39 The concept "comparison function" is not measurable quanti- tatively, however, it involves evaluation by use of norms or standards, which are still intangible. However, from the review of literature, it was assumed that norms and standards were products of the group character or characteristics. The degree to which a group possesses a particular charac- teristic is measurable. This rationale is the foundation for the hypotheses following. By knowing (or controlling) the degree to which a group possesses a particular characteris- tic, norms and standards could be predicted,2 and in turn the resulting evaluation, which in this case is the degree of liking or disliking. Evaluation can be perceived as ap- proval or disapproval, with disapproval resulting in sanc- tions or punishment such as rejection or ostracism. The variables of best-dressed rating, socio-economic status, and pOpularity will be discussed and hypotheses according to the evaluation-hypothesis model will be set up. Best-Dressed Rating as a Variable How well-dressed a group is could be a reflection of how important the group considers clothing (value of clothing). It would be expected that a well-dressed group would hold It was inferred that the merging of individuals' needs, values, ideas, produced a "group character" which in turn grew and matured into group norms. 2Norms and standards of a group can be hypothesized, but cannot be directly observed. Only resulting punishment (such as rejection) can be seen. high standards loner standarc' who attached to attach lit1 dressmg up 1;, evaluating otE in semi-casua FlttL h3’?©t12€sis, W: I. Frien willj Stude with tion II. Frien haVe COnce While Po W It We One Criterior \l Pom 2 . W11 S:cal Comte):t ate College 3 G IQtal n IOU peers _ ‘_ Er 40 high standards for appearance and a poorly-dressed group, lower standards. Form and Stone found that manual workers who attached little importance to clothes expected others to attach little significance to clothing also,1 and women dressing up to go shopping held different standards for evaluating other women shoppers than did those who shopped in semi-casual dress. Fitting this theory into the modified evaluation hypothesis, we can hypothesize: I. Friendship groups with high best-dressed scores will have a high proportion of members rejecting a student on the basis of appearance, while groups with low best-dressed scores will have a low propor- tion of members rejecting. II. Friendship groups with high best-dressed scores will have a high proportion of total rejection responses, concerning appearance, made by the group as a whole, while groups with low best-dressed scores will have a low proportion of total rejection responses. Popularity as a Variable It was established in the review of literature that one criterion of popularity is to be'good looking" and have 1 Form and Stone, 1955, op. cit. 2William Form and Gregory Stone, "The Local Community Clothing Market: A Study of the Social and Social Psycholo- gical Contexts of Shopping," Technical Bulletin 247, Michigan State College Agricultural Experiment Station, 1957. 3Group best-dressed scores are obtained by adding the total number of times members are named "best-dressed" by peers and dividing by the number of members in the group. ”nice clothes 'popular" ima Goffman state impression th- centers are 5 form their pa manner." It also hold hlg uate an indiv It co 111- Frien have dent POpul bers IV. Frien haVe 41 "nice clothes." The popular groups,in order to maintain their "popular" image must be careful about their appearance. Goffman states that in order for a group to convey a general impression that is consistent with the group's fostered one, members are selected who "are disciplined and will not per- form their parts in a clumsy, gauche, or self-conscious manner." It could be expected that the popular'groups would also hold high standards for appearance and negatively eval- uate an individual not dressed well. III. IV. It could be hypothesized that: Friendship groups with high popularity scores2 will have a high proportion of members rejecting a stu- dent on the basis of appearance,while groups with low popularity scores will have a low proportion of mem- bers rejecting. Friendship groups with high popularity scores will have a high proportion of total rejection responses concerning appearance made by the group as a whole, while groups with low popularity scores will have a low proportion of total rejection responses. Social Status as a Variable Evidence indicates that there is a tendency for 1Goffman, op. cit. 2Group popularity scores are obtained by adding the total number of times members are named "most popular" by peers and dividing by the number of members in the group. 33be15 Of t ed place gr classes- Th" :efbers WO‘ll toe of the f Clot _oorly-dress tatus. Sin ceived to be ground, etc. viewed and e- It cc V. Frier will studs with propc VI- Frier will IESpc as a Statu IQSpo 42 members of the upper classes to be more "aware" of clothing and place greater importance upon it than members of lower classes. This may imply that upper socio-economic class members would also be more critical of appearance by vir- tue of the fact they are more clothing conscious. Clothing is regarded as a status symbol, and thus poorly-dressed individuals would appear to be of lower status. Since groups usually recruit members who are per- ceived to be of the same class standing, have similar back- ground, etc., a poorly dressed individual would probably be viewed and evaluated as not "our kind." It could be hypothesized that: V. Friendship groups with high socio-economic status will have a high proportion of members rejecting a student on the basis of appearance, while groups with low socio-economic status will have a low proportion of members rejecting. VI. Friendship groups with high socio-economic status will have a high proportion of total rejection responses concerning appearance, made by the group as a whole, while low groups with low socio-economic status will have a low proportion of total rejection responses. T‘- 1' part star‘ class Of Michigan, guestionne tionnaire and 12, W1” CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY The longitudinal project of which this study is a part started in 1962. The ninth grade girls (graduating class of 1965) of East Lansing High School, East Lansing, Michigan, were chosen as the respondents of the background questionnaire and interview schedule.2 The background ques- tionnaire was administered to the girls in grades 9, 10, 11, and 12, while the girls were interviewed in grades 9 and 12. The following discussion will include aspects of the initial data collection and analytical methods of the larger project as they relate to this study, while focusing on the analytical methods basic to this particular research. The reader is asked to refer to preceding research3 for more de- tailed explanation about the background of the project. 1Appendix A. 2 Appendix B. Previous research of the longitudinal project is listed in the preface. 43 zany ways. I and has an av the state ave L‘“.31ng's ave. State's avera: in the 1970 3,, sixth among t} an average anr. ' r7" \ e w $777 r1" cl» (3 ‘\_| ~ I! 0—: r! A (D {h [—4 U) K.) a . rnment‘ Pr '11 2 Han: .- ‘ 44 Project Background Community Setting East Lansing, Michigan, city of 30,000 plus1 inhabi- tants and home of Michigan State University, is atypical in many ways. It is comprised largely of white collar workers, and has an average educational level of 15.8, as compared to the state average of 10.8 years as reported in 1960. East Lansing's average salary level in 1960 was $7,152, while the state's average was $6,256; however, East Lansing is listed in the 1970 New York Times Encyclopedic Almanac as ranking sixth among the affluent U. S. towns and cities in 1969, with an average annual household income of $22,355,2 with the state ranking twelfth among states with an average $3,674 per 1U. S. Bureau of Census reported a population of 30,198 in 1960, while The New York Times Encyclopedic Almanac Z970 estimates 50,000 as of 1969. Since, at the time of this writing, the 1970 census has not been taken, references will be made to United States Bureau of Census, Michigan General Population Characteristics, l960 (Washington, D. C.: Government Printing Office, 1960), pp. 24-17, 24-179, 24- 181, 24-191, 24-206 for 1960 data and The New York Times Encyclopedic Almanac 2970 (New York: New York Times Company, 1969), pp. 199, 270, 427, for current estimates. Since the project was conducted from 1962-1965, the reader should use stated figures as a rough guide; however, the character of East Lansing remains somewhat stable: a small, highly educa- ted, affluent city. 2This high figure may in part be due to the fact that a moderate percentage of households have a second income. Bjorngaard, op. cit., p. 32, noted that 24% of the mothers of the respondents worked and that 34% of the respondents repor- ted a second person contributing financial support to the family (1962), while Hendricks, op. cit., p. 41, indicated that 30% of respondents said that the family received secon- dary support (1965). gag-1m incc with 514,14 It chosen for dens, a low collect dat economic Ci; H] :14 (D r—4 :1 m ['1‘ '1 - 4 TWO The bad-(grog dale drawn u The former W Contained qu Pation, and ' The tramEd Persc and SOcl<31 ac 12th grades interview We 45 capita income. (Ingham County ranks 73rd among counties with $14,143 per household.) It should be noted that East Lansing High School, chosen for the project, also had students from Towar Gar- dens, a low-income housing area. Thus the study was able to collect data from interviewees of widely varying socio- economic circumstances. The Instruments and Administration Two instruments for the project were developed: The background questionnaire by Wass and the interview sche- dule drawn up by Bjorngaard and later modified by Hendricks. The former-was employed all four years of the project and contained questions of a sociometric, organization-partici- pation, and occupational-financial (family) nature. The latter, an interview schedule administered by trained persons, sought opinions about clothing, appearance and social acceptance. It was administered in the 9th and 12th grades and contained a rating sheet on which the adult interviewer rated each respondent on appearance. Questions were constructed in Stone's frame of reference of program or review responses, review responses being comments "about the wearer of clothes by others" while program responses were "responses made about the wearer by the wearer." 1Gregory P. Stone, "Appearance and the Self,‘ Dress, Adornment and the Social Order, ed. by Mary Ellen Roach and Joanne Bubolz Eicher (New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1965), P. 221. atswer. The structed of upon, pro-vid different "n cussions of 46 The interview schedule contained both closed and Open- ended questions and took respondents from 25 to 70 minutes to answer. The latter portion of the interview, mainly con- structed of open-ended questions, which this study focuses upon, provided responses to situational stories of three different "new" girls and their appearance. Context and dis- cussions of these stories is included under "The Research De- sign." Analytical Tools Warner's Index. The technique used by the project to measure social class status was Warner's Index of Status Characteristics, which was deemed best by the researchers 1 . . for a small city. Occupational classifications were modi- fied slightly, as Warner suggested might be necessary in cer- . 2 . .. tain cases, to take into account the nature of the educa— tional community." 4 3 Each girl was given as ISC score based on three weighted indices: occupational (times five); dwelling area Don Martindale, American Society (Princeton, N. J.: D. Van Nostrand Company, Inc., 1960), p. 397. 2W. Lloyd Warner, Marchia Meeker, and Kenneth Eells, Social Class in America (Chicago: Science Research Associa- tes, Inc., 1949), p. 185. 3 . ISC refers to Warner's Index of Status Characteris- tics. Source of income, ordinarily the fourth index, was not asked of the girls, since it was assumed that the girls would not know this information. fires three); a: occupations were grsflonnaires a; :te city directox Lndivmuals: a 5 agent, and a men: induals rated t Girls we: tngto the follc social class; 38- Ewmer,for this were used, promd ln the 9th grade from 12 to 72. :COIe s were Obtai Stores. Group an ‘ grad 47 1 (times three); and house type (times four). The fathers' occupations were determined from responses to the background questionnaires and were checked against school records and the city directory. Residential areas were rated by four individuals: a sociologist, an economist, a real estate agent, and a member of the research team. Two or more in- dividuals rated the houses on Warner's seven pbint scale.2 Girls were assigned to social class groupings accor- ding to the following breakdown of ISC scores: 12-37, upper social class; 38-61, middle class; and 62-84, lower class. However, for this particular study, only the raw ISC scores were used, providing greater accuracy. Individual scores in the 9th grade ranged from 12 to 75, and in the 12th grade from 12 to 72. For purposes of this study, group and subgroup ISC scores were obtained by averaging the members' individual socres. Group and subgroup scores ranged from 25.5 to 66.0 in the ninth grade and in the twelfth grade from 18.4 to 62.6. Sociometry "A sociometric test is a means for determining the degree to which individuals are accepted in a group, for dis- covering the realtionships which exist among these individuals lWarner, op. cit.,p. 185. ZIbid. and for (115 C1 The :f rare promde The peopl of our t1 friends . ” Write the 9th grade person yo only.) 48 and for disclosing the structure of the group itself."1 The following questions of the background question- naire provided a sociometric test for the project: The people with whom we share secrets and spend most of our time are usually referred to as our "best friends." Write theznames of your two "best girl friends" in the 9th grade in the high school. (If you only have one person you consider a "best friend," write her name only.) 1. 2 If you have more than two3 "best friends" in the 9th grade, write their names in the space below. 1. 2. If your "best girl friends" are in another grade, or another school, write their names in the space below. 1. 2. The general question of friendship was asked, rather than any question relating to a specific activity. Croft and Grygier found this to be the best indication of friend— L/lMary L. Northway, A Primer of Sociometry (Canada: University of Toronto Press, 1952), p. 1. 2Grade level was changed each year in the question- naire to the appropriate grade. 0"3Katherine M. Evans, Sociometry and Education (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1962), p. 14, maintains _J that a true sociometric test question would make iELpossible for an unlimited number of Choices to be made, while NorthwaifvopT cit” , suggests that ch01cesfibe“limitedwto three_ or four on eaCh“criterion, Since additional choices would be less meaningful and’1ess~decisive. -~m-w~w-—‘«-w~-~'~u w"'——-- —r—.‘-—-_ l whi 18 Gr 531:3: general criteri 5:5. He attri speCLfic criter zonal factors. The bac retric questior. had been in see to develop the; “iswered the or Pansindicateo 5?ontaneous and are made privat they w ere chose ”tiality and the 49 ship,l while Gronlund found that sociometric scores based on general criterion were more stable than those based on speci- fics. He attributed this to the fact that choices based on specific criterion rely more on constantly changing situa- tional factors.2 The background questionnaires, containing the socio- metric questions, were administered after the school year had been in session several months, which allowed students to develop their "real" likes and dislikes.3 The respondents answered the questions privately (not in an interview). Evans indicated that "choices . . . are likely to be more spontaneous and more in line with real likes . . . if they are made privately so that individuals do not know by whom they were chosen. . ."4 The girls were pledged to confiden- tiality and that pledge has been kept. Each of the four years, researchers of the project charted sociograms after gathering sociometric data. Using the respondents' "code numbers," they indicated reciprocated l I of Truants and Juvenile Delinquents, . J. Croft and T. G. Gryier, "Social Relationships " Human Relations, Vol. IX 2 . . V/ Norman E. Gronlund, "The Relative Stability of Class- room Social Status with Unweighted and Weighted Sociometric Choices," Journal of Educational Psychology, Vol. 47 (1956), pp. 147-57. 3Evans, op. cit.p. 16, states that choices are more realistic if the group has been in existence for some time. 4Ibid. choices by reciprocal isolates de7 project as 1 Reciproc diagram were ret Mutual P '——_ hence a Isolate *— acices 1 Accarate. IEClproc Refe: that of the 32 were Of ml 17 RFS'S' the Figur \ l - . In indicated. t ZLitt / 50 choices by lines connecting two circles.l A pattern of reciprocal friendship structures (RFS's), mutual pairs, and isolates develOped. The classifications were defined by the project as follows: Reciprocal FriendshipAStructure (RPS): a sociometric diagram of individuals whose choices of friendship' were returned. Mutual Pair (MP): a reciprocated choice of two members, hence a dyad. Isolate (I): an individual who had no reciprocated choices on a sociogram. Accurate Perceiver: an individual who had allchoices reciprocated, or who neither chose nor was chosen. Referring to Figure III, p. 52, the reader can see that of the 154 girls in the ninth grade, 23 were isolates, 32 were of mutual pairs, and 99 were RFS members. Of the 3 l7 RFS's, there were four triangles and four chains.4 Figure II, p. 38, shows that of the 138 girls in the In the master sociogram, unreciprocated choices were indicated. The disadvantages of this were that it failed to show unreciprocated choices or intensity of responses. 2Littrell, op. cit., p. 27. 3Triangles were defined as "three individuals whose choice of each other forms a cohesive unit," while chains were designated as "an open series of mutual choices." Hendricks, op. cit., p. 24. 4This particular sociometric pattern of several chains accompanied by many mutual pairs hints of Moreno's network theory. He theorizes that chains develop ”gradually [within structures of older children] with an increased number of mu- tual pairs." The partners of mutual pairs start to click with others like themselves and chain reactions emerge and extend. J. L. Moreno and Helen H. Jennings, "Statistics of Social Configurations," The Sociometry Reader , ed. by J. L. Moreno (Glencoe: 111.: The Free Press, 1960). P. 37. twelfth grade, and 102 were R 'true" chains Hendri tures into sag: sociogram, She de: The criter: 0f locatior more recipi made by men Where sing] number of j SCIUtinizec' person Wi‘O t0 each 839 She thu 432C: RPS 407 1 4178 and 417C. FOllowi broke the ninth Only two 33's, Res 102 was div IOZC' EaCh of P38 107 ' a bre; ”mating group 51 twelfth grade, 20 were isolates, 16 belonged to mutual pairs and 102 were RFS members. Of the 10 RFS's, there were two "true" chains and no "true" triangles. Hendricks subdivided the reciprocal friendship struc- tures into segments, to form subgroups in the twelfth grade sociogram. She described her rationale as follows: The criteria employed to split the large groups consisted of location of pivots,-i.e., individuals with four or more reciprocated choices, and the unreciprocated choices made by members of the segment. The breaks were made where single ties connected the segments containing a number of internal ties. The unreciprocated choices were scrutinized to determine in which segment to place the person who was azconnector, i.e., one with a single tie to each segment. She thus broke down RFS 432 into 432A, 4328 and 432C; RFS 407 into 407A and 4078; and RFS 417 into 417A, 4173 and 417C. (Figure IV.) 1 Following Hendricks' criteria, the current researcher broke the ninth grade sociogram into subgroups (Figure III). Only two RFS's, 102 and 107, met the criteria to be separated. RFS 102 was divided into three segments: 102A, 102B, and 102C. Each of these segments contained internal ties. In RFS 107, a break was made between RFS members 124 and 038, creating groups 107A and 1078. Also, there appears that there could be a natural break between 087 and 086; however, this would not follow Hendricks' criteria of internal ties within 1One triangle extended from RFS 432 and was desig- nated by Hendricks as RFS 4328. 2Hendricks, op. cit., p. 45. 52 E ' RFS] I E v ' RFS Ill 49) ll) “ ' menu A .5.” .- -9 new ‘ Q mane RFS [07 ‘ “.9 G 133 ma: 24mwmz' Ge @@@® ijv' e -uman' canny- - a v ISO]. 4755 ‘ 313 - a . ISOLATES MPc G M M (:3 up, 6119 qifiu% @ up” 0 up, [501.4755 ‘ Q ‘- ee v- A 5.9 e e e a @e (3*.13) 48) «a ‘15.),‘187 «a «a» - v "A B Upper Social Class Mddlo Ace to Pine I 0 Lower i .. 093 . RFS l06 - GB ' - as v - “3) '8’ ‘l' E (a) «l7 18) ,5, 13><§70®Q§ RFS I08 /\ which bchool Class Jilgh Reciprocal Friendships of the Ninth Grade Girls in One of 1965 Became the Senior Class Figure 3. 53 ucwptor Lforfor .Zofl: \ n u. — EL} ._ CIVr .T-Q Ar .. 4., n T7 L I b r l) V i . are up... :5)... 4., 3.: l ( .fllylla 4 . . i4 . v on , . zQLumbkerau. l 5%.th Mix? a... _. ~ . _ . 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Vx‘ MHKQ .4 _ . _. _ \ \l/ . .. . 123.. xx» wile fie: 1113 Fe 1 ,1 _ p . . \\JV l\1/r we, .msow oeox «I 1 . .N. 4 xi .sr11. 1_~ m L.u inc Econ—3 z u L ~32. of E moszmpzmflum HMOOHQMOQx to mmmHO .¢ whomflm mOT# _ 3 .CV hkt .NI . r .w. 01(— .,u,...r. 1|- ii «on... .1 .- .|/. Veils .43. nut __/ .. . .v . ../ . \ . A r . v . .. L . / v y .13 $7-143... $3. (an? r: t. i.. 17 in t. . ,. V 1 . 4 / . J . fl # 1 . _ . l _ . p Y . . \r r. v [K m . _. . 1.. a . .m r. . Ii. 1...; . if... H... Til C... n. . 11.5": .i.A Oh? . 1500.1 I: . I4 r 1 {.4 I ,l‘,.11 /# .2 v v.# I . \.. r- . x... 0233 .. 2.0. y 1.... e3. aniouton 30533 .H 1—l/H. 5. I. .\.\i I F. )b . 3.3 i Co ,ooo. . . \. . 4:) I. .OOQD 0.09.} .0304 # fl \. . i . .... .Luib\ pl. r 5,.-.) .. . .mflsiemoll, 3: al I/ In o (I, ll V». H Ti Al mdeU 4d.uOm b, ‘71 ir villi} KI K . :UCW rm! . Awnfirl .H‘H II I‘/r // Al. \N». WKQ \ x. ,. . x . .. / . \ . . «E a all M . 3. 1.2.3. 11.1.-. .5311... ...: .llawo. .okoi mic/11.; - . r v e u . lifli. - . . . L . _ . i. x Y: L T - i wmo , 6.73 r. NCO v \ I I 1. 0 . . a a .. \ . _ Lon: ll. . 1 i. nwm. v a .. I ll Vii .174 II 1. - _ . N . Ni-| \ .‘ T I, 1.,1..1.\Qnrm.\1 .u~.~...\Q 1 ,u_r.vllll.l|l|f,m:O 1., Um? u .Ir , fl 1 o ). \ .l1 \“4. . 1 / \ — ’crlwliu » \\f./ . . / \ V r i 4 v a 4 \ a . / V \VI . r. A. 3..., . (we, 1.00. [1 10C. Ill grail . Qmo \L 7. film . 4i 4.. . u 1|. [1 54 the segments, since the break would result in a chain which is an open series of mutual choices rather than a segment with internal ties. The ninth and twelfth grade subgroups are treated as separate and independent units for purposes of statistical analysis, thus resulting in 20 groups for the ninth grade and 15 groups for the twelfth grade. The Research Design Examination of the Situational Stories The data for this project were obtained from the reSponses to the situational stories of the "opinionnaires" administered by adult interviewers in the ninth and twelfth grades. The wording and questions of the three stories dif- fered somewhat between the two years (1962 and 1965). The exact stories and questions for each year are contained in Appendix B. These stories are the "cues" (information pre- sented about stimulus person) discussed in the analysis of the Review of Literature. Each story is about a hypothetical new girl who comes to East Lansing High School. The first girl, Jean, comes to school dressed neat and clean, but wearing a plaid skirt and flowered blouse. The second, Michelle, comes to school wearing colored socks when the style is to wear white socks (ninth grade) or nylons (twelfth grade). Lynn, the third girl, wears expensive clothes but has messy hair. Questions about the girls, such as the following, were asked: 55' mmusuoouum mflampcowum Hooonmwoom ummumq mo asocxmoum Hmucofibmm 1%) fined mmm .mouswosuum mwnmpcowum Hmooumfioom HomHmH :w some mxmmun .Amemuo sneeze .m ousmflm Home: canvas Hosoq ®‘©Q mo coaumooa moumowocw I x szwmq 56' Amomuw gumam39v mousuosuum mflnwccoflum Hmooumfioom “momma mo cBOUxmon HmucoEmom .m ousmflm Uhav mmm II. a @ Home: 4’ a! matte: H950; ’ .. e Xek o o o hl. .Ir . . . szwmq she rum. @‘hflu e mhov mg mg monsuosuum , ’ mfinmncowum Hmo ’ mnae mm. Ioumfloom Hmmuma @ ® @ G 1. ® CH moms mxmoun 3 ® m a mopmowpcw I II: II. at at a): g 4 mama mmm .. m“... ® slaw flag «a. A! , .l! A! ll. Ll. E3 mam om» EVE nMu H c )9”) . 2.0 50 me 8 .. a. c 3 we ( "would you cons her into your g Althou; :3}! usually e: :2-.o'.:.'ed them 5 . These jective" tech: senselves int was her," or"' 9:0 dissertai‘ ll-ustra" N -ions 2 - | Auva 377 “5361pn} I” T m“. ‘ «:3, ‘T—b ‘. r~.- “snger ara I'I‘nst-Or 19 s ‘ p: n . Q ‘)~ tm Sud. On f L 'I, . thfi :‘r'm: ," .4 n1 Vy sauce ‘ a frown n ten 8 ‘ESNA VSpO "1 m T? 57 "Would you consider her well-dressed?" "Would you invite . - , 1 her into your group?" "What do you think of her?" etc. Although many of the questions were worded so that they usually elicited a "yes" or no response, questions followed them such as "Why.or why not?" or "Why do you think so?" Also the interviewers "probed" when they felt it was appropriate. Thus, the interview combined both the advantages of Open-ended2 and closed questions, while trying . . . . 3 . to minimize the disadvantages. InterV1ewers had no pre" 1These stories could be considered a modified "pro- jective" technique, since some of the girls "projected" themselves into the stories and answered in terms of "If I was her," or "If I was her friend." Rosencranz, op. cit., 1960 dissertation, used a projective technique (TAT test: illustrations of people wearing different types of cloth- ing in different situations) to measure clothing awareness. 2Advantages of the open-ended question are that the respondent may structure his answer as he wishes and infor- mation is gained that could not be obtained adequately by means of a closed question. Charles F. Cannell and Robert L. Kahn, "The Collection of Data by Interviewing," in Research Methods in the Behavioral Sciences, ed. by Leon Festinger and Daniel Katz (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1965), p. 352. Another advantage is that it avoids the fixed choice question's pitfall of restricting "the possibility that the actor's perception and interpreta- tion of the items will be problematic." Aaron V. Cicourel, Method and Measurement in Sociology (London: The Free Press of Glencoe, Collier-Macmillan Ltd., 1964), p. 111. 3C. A. Moser, Survey Methods in Social Investigation (London: William, Heinemann, Ltd., 1958), explains that dis- advantages of the open—ended question are its inability to gauge intensity (p. 221) and its tendency to elicit "I don't know" reSponses (p. 189). He also states, "The answer the respondent actually gives will depend on the aSpect of the issue that is uppermost in his mind--quite possibly because the wording of the question, or the context created by pre- vious ones put it there." (p. 221). 58 . l . coded categories except yes and no, and tried to record everything the respondent said. The data were left uncoded, until the writer developed a code. Coding of the Data 2 Berelson defines "content analysis" as "a research technique for the objective, systematic, and quantitative description of the manifest content of communication."3 He developed a classification of sixteen categories for verbal material. The one most applicable to this study is to re- flect attitudes, interests and values of population groups. In order for content analysis to be objective and reliable, specific and well-defined categories must be 5 .3 develOped. Riley asserts that "careful definition and 1A risk with pre-coded questions is that answers may be forced into categories to which they do not properly belong, as when respondents say "yes,but," or "no, except." "The coding demands a decision one way or the other and may result in qualified responses being forced into categories to which they do not genuinely belong." Moser, op. cit., p. 231. 2 . For purposes of this study, the terms "coding" and "content analysis" will be used interchangeably. 3Bernard Berelson, Content Analysis in Communication Research (Glencoe, I11.: The Free Press, 1952), p. 18. 4Dorwin P. Cartwright, "Analysis of Qualitative Material," in Research Methods in the Behavioral Sciences, ed. by Leon Festinger and Daniel Katz (Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1964), p. 432. 5Marvin Speigelman, Carl Terwilliger, and Franklin Fearing, "The Reliability of Agreement in Content Analysis," Journal of Social Psychology, 37 (1953), pp. 175-87. listing of exa: ting these 5qu network of cc four aspects oi gories for eaci cate§0ry (dBSl§ miffi and ada: In ana tions, the Wri writer Origina intensity. but Of the code, 0 illustrated in For co 59 listing of examples is essential."1 The writer, incorpora- ting these suggestions into the analysis,used Cartwright's framework of content analysis. Cartwright outlines the four aspects of objective coding: the variables; the cate- gories for each variable; operational definition of each category (designating the "recording unit" and "context unit"; and adaptation of analysis outline to the empirical.2 In analyzing data obtained from the Open-ended ques- tions, the writer used the serial classification.3 The writer originally coded the data, using five categories of intensity, but later collapsed these to three. An example of the code, one variable with categories and examples,is illustrated in the following Table I.4 For coding the closed questions, such as "Would you lMatilda White Riley, Sociological Research: A Case Approach (New York: Harcourt, Brace, and World, Inc., 1963), p. 333. 2Cartwright, op. cit., pp. 435-38. 3Lazarsfeld and Barton, "Qualitative Measurement in the Social Sciences: Classification, Typologies, and In- dices," in The Policy Sciences, ed. by D. Lerner and H. D. Lasswell (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1951), pp. 155-92, classify the possible types of systems of cate- gorization in coding qualitative materials as dichotomies, serials, and variables. The first two are used for this study, dichotomies calling for decision of presence or ab- sence of a variable and serials reflecting intensity ran- king. Responses to this variable and two others are de- tailed in Appendix D. The Variable: or of social ac Recording Unit: referring to M1 Context Unit: Categories: iLéfld 2. Litt Exa'noles: "pe, thetic toward 1 understand it , «I ‘ nice girl and a thing like 5 “Ch Effect on 3' Some diffi \ 60 TABLE 1 EXAMPLE OF SERIAL CODING The Variable: Relative,difficulty of Michelle makingyfriends or of social acceptancel because of her white socks. Tr Recording Unit: At least a coherent phrase (subject and verb) referring to Michelle and friendship or social acceptance. Context Unit: All responses pertaining to Michelle. Categories: 1. and 2. Little or no difficultyiin making friends Examples: "People would be sympa- thetic toward her and kids would understand it was a fad." Michelle encountering no "I think if she is real more difficulty in making nice girl and interested in school, friends than any new girl a thing like socks would not have would. much effect on making friends." Operational definition: respondent perceives 3. Some difficulty or difference in making friends Examples: "It might tend to make it a little more difficult for her to make friends." Operational definition: respondent sees some or moderate difficulty of "It might take a lit- tle longer to get in." "Some people might just inadvertently avoid her be- cause of it." "Some people judge others by things like socks, others don't. She's bound to find friends that don't go ac- cording to clothes." There'd be a differ- ence in what friends she gets." Michelle making friends or being accepted, be- cause of her socks. 1The variable was not asked as a question, but many girls mentioned it in the course of answering others. It may have been stated directly or indirectly, as "People would be embarrassed to be seen with her." Table l - Con Categories : 4. and 5. Mu Examples: " S. Jean--an outc III jority of the her." "T tracize her." be able to £1 who will want all of the ti 61 Table l - Continued Categories: 4. and 5. Much difficulty in making friends Examples: "She'd probably be like Jean--an outcast." "I don't think the ma- jority of the girls would accept her." "The kids would os- tracize her." "She'd probably not be able to find good friends who will want to be with her all of the time." Operational definition: respondent perceives the socks as causing Michelle much difficulty in mak- ing friends: ostracism; getting into group really doesn't like; affecting her personality so that she repulses any would-i be friends. invite her lntC ended serial We 1. yes, 113‘ 2. yes, ‘33 3. depend: 4. no, 24*. 5, no ("N Asixth catego. poses of this Judgment was IT. This was the c: of this study. The wr first impressr respondent and about a single Of this and th lngs . ll SC!" 62 invite her into your group?" a code similar to the open- ended serial was developed. It consisted of five categories: 1. yes, unconditionally ("Yes"; "Yes, certainly") 2. yes, conditionally ("Yes, if nice")1 3. depends ("depends," "maybe") 4. no, unless ("No, unless she was really sharp.") 5. no ("No," "I don't think so.") A sixth category was included for "I don't know." For pur- poses of this study, it was collapsed to a dichotomy. Judgment was made as to presence or absence of rejection. This was the code used for the data to test the hypotheses of this study. The writer also did quantification coding of negative first impressions. The "unit of enumeration" was the single respondent and a "recording unit" encompassed all responses about a single girl (Jean, Lynn, or Michelle). The results of this and the other coding is discussed under "The Find- ings." Scoring and Statistical Technique The "Coding of Data" explained the coding of \ If a respondent said "Yes, if changed," this was coded as 4--a rejection since the respondent wouldn't ac- cept her as is. 2Presence and absence is used rather than acceptance of Jean, Michelle, or Lynn, since many of.the girls did not reject them, but did not accept them (i.e., "Don't know," "Depends," Maybe"). rejection of e of :ef-.-ctor an end best-dress 63 . . . 1 . rejection of each girl by a dichotomy. The group scores of rejector and ostracism and pOpularity, social status, and best-dressed scores were obtained as follows: Dependent Variables Rejector score of_grgupe number' of girls in the group rejecting any one girl.2 (It does not .fiNOo of Rejectors matter if the respondent rejected . N one or all of the girls; and in the twelfth grade, if she re- jected a girl once or twice.) divided by the number of girls in the group. Ostracism score of grogp; total {Total Rejections number of rejections made by mem- N bers of the group divided by the number of girls in the group. 3 Independent Variables {LIFC Scores . ISC group score: sum of girls' N ISC scoresidivided by the number of girls in the group. 1The ninth grade opinionnaire contained no questions pertaining to the acceptance of Michelle, so there could only be rejection responses for Jean and Lynn. Also, in the twelfth grade, every girl was asked two acceptance questions about each girl, "Would you like her as a girl friend?" and "Would you like her to run around with your group?" while in the ninth grade only one acceptance question was asked for each girl. 2The operational definition of a "rejector" is a respondent who rejects any of the three girls one time or more. 3These independent Variables or characteristics of the group are the "known characteristics" which are discussed in relationship to the modified evaluation-hypothesis model. Group characteristics were substituted for norms which were substituted for the perceptual set. These characteristics were measured as follows: "evaluation t. while Popular "characterist stories are t; FIGURE 7. A: ACCORDING TO 64 Group popularity score: number Z Pop. Points of times girls in the group were N named most popular divided by the number of girls in the group. Group best-dressed score:l num- _£ B.D. Points ber of times girls in the group N were named best dressed divided by the number of girls in the group. The rejector and ostracism scores fit into the "evaluation triangle" of the evaluationéhypothesis model, while popularity, ISC, and best-dressed scores fit into the "characteristics triangle" (set), while the situational stories are the cues. FIGURE 7. AN ADAPTATION OF THE EVALUATION HYPOTHESIS MODEL, ACCORDING TO THE STUDY'S RESEARCH DESIGN rejector Restatement of Hypotheses The hypotheses can be restated as such: 1If a group had more not dressed right points than best-dressed points, the group was not given a best-dressed score. This occurred in only two cases. III. Frier have popul IV- Frier have POpu. V: FrlEI Will low SCOr. VI. Prie Will low Scor The betREQn att; easureS a Dating the 1 CISS Produ. \\\\\“‘\\ L 1pa T5R€qn-1 65 I. Friendship groups with high bestedressed scores will have high rejector scores, while groups with low best-dressed scores will have low rejector scores. II. Friendship groups with high best-dressed scores will have high ostracism scores, while groups with low best-dressed scores will have low ostracism scores. III. Friendship groups with high popularity scores will have high rejector scores, while groups with low popularity scores will have low rejector scores. IV. Friendship groups with high popularity scores will have high ostracism scores, while groups with low popularity scores will have low ostracism scores. V. Friendship groups with high socio-economic scores will have high rejector scores, while groups with low socio-economic scores will have low rejector scores. VI. Friendship groups with high socio-economic scores will have high ostracism scores, while groups with low socio-economic scores will have low ostracism scores. The Q statistic or Yule's Q, a measure of association between attributes, will be used to analyze the data. Q measures association in a fourfold table and is found by com- puting the ratio between the difference and the sum of the cross products of the diagonal cells. lPauline V. Young, Scientific Social Surveys and Research (Englewood Cliffs, N. J.: Prentice—Hall, Inc., IQRG\ n 700 "It -3 used in categ;. "the fact that been complete;i m the relati value of Q, s- IOWS remain u: 66 .._____1r._.____., "It is defined as 1 _ where a, b, c, d refer to the cell frequenCIes." Q is es- pecially useful when the marginals are fixed by the method used in categorizing, since it can take into consideration "the fact that the marginals for the dependent variable have been completely fixed by the method of research."2 A change in the relative size of the marginals does not affect the value of Q, so long as the ratios within either columns or rows remain undisturbed,3 thus making Q a stable but simple test of association. Q is appropriate for genuine attributes, but can also be applied to continuous variables by prudently cutting them into dichotomies.4 For analysis of this data, dichoto- mies will be created out of the continuous variables of ISC group scores, popularity group score, group best-dressed lHubert M. Blaloch, Social Statistics (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1960), p. 231. 2Ibid. 3 u - - John H. Mueller and Karl F. Schuessler, Statisti- cal Reasoning" in Sociology (Boston: Houghton-Mifflin Com- pany, 1961), p. 246. 4Ibid., pp. 247-48. score. 910“? r« rejector, and ' or when appfOiJ no simple quan aspecific pre to examine the since one or *5 size of Q. Yu coefficients 5 but this study 0. however, 1; eKiSts between thorough st ati 67 Score, group rejector score and group ostracism score. ISC, rejector, and ostracism scores will follow equal divisions or when appropriate, natural breaks.l According to Mueller and Schuessler, "A possesses no simple quantitative meaning, and is not convertible into a specific prediction."2 When interpreting Q, it is useful to examine the 2 x 2 tabulation and consider the size of N, since one or few cell transfers could decidedly alter the size of Q. Yule's Q, as an analogy to other correlational coefficients such as the Pearson R, may seem pretentious, but this study does not claim to present such an analogy. Q, however, is a useful guide as to whether a relationship exists between variables, before tackling more rigid and thorough statistical analysis. 1This is_not to imply that breaks will be made to manipulate data to support contentions, but will be made as equal breaks, unless a large range gap occurs between scores, creating a natural division. 2Mueller and Schuessler, op. cit., p. 249. v" --.-,7- .~ Sgdllfli's In tit “he 0455 Corist that Evaluati- tual set of u. to include ‘Jaj Sis Of PErCé1-, M., V D degested th - . CHAPTER IV STATISTICAL ANAHKSIE? AND TESTING OF THE HYPOTHESES In the review of literature and statement of hypo- theses, the "evaluaticnvhypothesis" model proposed that dif- ferences in evaluation (rejection) could be directly rela- ted to the cues presented and the perceptual set (norms and values) of those perceiving and thus evaluating. By holding the cues constant (situational storiesl), it was assumed that evaluation would be directly influenced by the percep- tual set of the observer, which was expanded and defined as to include values and norms which were in essence a synthe- sis of perceiver characteristics. The review of literature suggested that group norms, rather than individual norms, of adolescents revailed in the areas of dress and peer re- lations. Based on these concepts and the review of the lit- erature, the following hypotheses were drawn up and later revised to read: I. Friendship groups with high best—dressed scores will The situational stories were "constant" cues in that each reSpondent was presented the identical stories (intra-respondent consistency) and the stories each presen- ted a situation of a girl violating an accepted mode of dress or appearance. 68 l. . e i . ; a e. e t i r e i r as I. v \u l ., \ n... .J .\. VI... 1 .l vwv b l n 1. ‘1' w .1. r. r d as f. .G u I "d C I 1 Q C r l C \. hr“ h e I... at}. C hr. Hi. p r... h Dr P; W .I. 5 EL .W l b . I ' . .93 T; "H v .1 Ti. .,. V . l .11. hcve high rejector scores, wnile groups With low beetvdressed scores will have low rejector scores. II. Friendship groups WJLh high best~dressed scores will have high ostracism scores, while groups with low best-dressed scores Will have low ostracism scores. Ill, Friendship gr ups with high popularity scores will have high rejector scores, while groups with low popularity scoaes Will have low rejector scores. IV. Friendship ngULS Wlth high popularity scores will have high ostracism scores, while groups with low pOpularity scores Will have low ostracism scores. V. Friendship groups With high socio—economic scores will have high rejector scores, while groups with low socio-econamic scores Wlll have low rejector scores. VI. Friendship groups With high soc10~economic scores will have high ostraCIsm scores, while groups with low socio~eco1 mic stores will HQJB low ostracism scores. This chapter analyzes and discusses the statistical testing of the hypotheses by YdiB'S Q. Review of Rejector and Qstra:ism_8¢gzes and Status, Popularity, and Best-Dressed Ratings ISC Group Ratincs The ISC Group Rating was obtained by adding the socres of all members of an RFS group and dividing by the number AF momhorc in +ha nvmnn Whn lrdmifnflihnl ctnav 70 designated ISC scores of 12 to 37 as upper class and scores of 62 to 84 as lower class.ll Of the 20 RFS groups in the ninth grade, 13 fell within the upper class with scores 1 ranging from 25.5 to 35.7. Seven of these groups were with- in a range of 3.9 points, 27.9 to 31.8. Thus within the upper-class there was only a small range of difference in scores. Five groups were middle class with scores ranging from 37.3 to 50.9, and there were two lower class groups of ISC scores, 64.0 and 66.0.. There is a large break from the lowest score of the middle class (50.9) to the highest score of the lower class (64.0). This break of 13.1 points is the largest in the total ranking, with the next largest break being 8.8 points between the lowest score of the mid- dle class (50.9) and the next to the lowest score(42.l). Thus, through the top seventeen group scores there is no break larger than 3.2 points, with a 16.6 point range while the lowest scores cover a 15.1 point range with the largest break of 13.1 points. 1Bjorngaard, op. cit., stated "The use of the term 'upper class' for East Lansing does not have the same meaning as Warner's upper class did. Upper in reference to East Lansing also includes upper-middle and indetermi- nate. The lower class of East Lansing consisted of in- determinate upper-lower to lower-lower class according to Warner's social class equivalents," p. 31. 71 Group Code Number1 ISC Score 106 25.5 108 27.1 113 27.9 102B 28.3 114 28.5 107A 30.7 116 31.0 107B 31.4 117 31.8 - 103 32.5 HighnLow Break 102C 34.0 111 34.0 104 35.7 112 37.3 109 40.5 115 41.0 110 42.1 102A 50.9 105 64.0 101 66.0 N = 20 A break was made between the scores of 32.5 and 34.0, thus putting 10 groups with scores of 32.5 and above in the high category and 10 groups with scores of 34.0 and below in the low category. Of the 15 groups in the twelfth grade, all but three fell within the upper class range with scores of 18.4 to 36.9. While the range of upper class scores was 12.2 in the ninth grade, it was 18.5 in the twelfth grade. There were two middle class groups with scores of 41.5 and 45.0, 1The longitudinal project correlated the memberships of the group from year to year during the four-year study and gave code numbers the previous year to the group of similar composition. Thus a group could be 101 in the ninth grade, 201 in the tenth grade, etc. while one was lower Class with a score or 62.6. While the range of the middle class scores in the ninth grade was 13.6 .5 pQLnts in the twelfth ggade. The largest . LA.‘ points, it was break was 16.4 paints between the lowest scare of the mid- dle Class and the low ciass score, with the neat largest being 6.6 points netWaen 'he tire; and s Ctfld highest upper class scores. Thus within the groups of the twelfth grade the ninth grade; there was a wider range at secres that in however, seven graups feLl within 4.0 points at each other. High—L Break Grsup Code Number I83 8: 1: 4078 . 477 2 C) (l 4 432A 414 407A 452 422 417B 417A 9 I 1' LA} (JJ (A) LA) LA) 'w' "x" N F4 5'" H O C 00 U" (I \D (I) J3 J) U": N \o O 0L- 460 432C 417C 427 432B 401C U" KC) U1 0 o I“ ‘ L.’ 4);;wa- \JUfii-JO‘x'tMC‘. 0. CT: 32.9 and 36.0, which (I. A break was made beLween score corresponded roughly to LhS Linth grade break of 32.5 and 34.0. Although this break created nine high groups and six low groups, it followed a natural break of 3.1 points dif- ference as opposed to the difference of 1.1 paints between scores of 31.8 and 32.9. 73 Popularity and Best-Dressed Scores POpularity and Best—Dressed Group scores were de- termined by adding the number of times members of a group were named best-dressed or popular and then dividing by the number of members of the group. Only seven groups in the ninth grade had popularity scores, since the other 13 groups had no members mentioned as most popular. Thus popularity was concentrated within a few groups, especially the three RFS groups 107A, 111, and 107B. Scores of the seven ranged from .17 to 12.07. All of the popular groups were from the upper class except for one from the upper-middle. Grouprode Number Popularity Score 107A 12.07 111 5.25 1073 1.93 102C .83 106 .50 108 :50 110 .17 N=7 ' Six groups of the 20 were named "best—dressed." Four of the "best-dressed" groups had also been named most popular. Scores ranged from 33 to 10.07. Note that the top three "best-dressed" groups were also the three tOp "most popular." All "best dressed" groups were of the upper class. 74 Group Code Number Best-Dressed Score 107A 10.07 111 4.00 1078 1.43 103 1.00 102C .33 114 .33 N = 6 Of the 15 groups of the twelfth grade, six had mem- bers that were named "most popular," and fell within the top seven ISC scores. Ratings varied from .31 to 5.91. Group Code Number Popularity Score 407A 5.91 407B 1.00 414 .67 427 .59 409 .40 402A .38 N = 7 Nine groups had "best-dressed" members and fell with- in the top ten ISC scores. All of the groups that were men- tioned most popular were also named "best-dressed" and the two groups ranking highest in popularity, also ranked high- est as "best-dressed." Scores ranged from..20 to 3.73. Group Code Number. Best-Dressed Score 407A 3.73 4073 1.83 402A .75 417A .80 414 .67> 417C .44 427 .43 411 .40 409 V .20 75 The larger RFS 107 (A and B) and RFS 407 (A and B) emerged as the "leading crowd“ in the freshman and senior years. Kelley,l found that the RFS 7 group "was among the structures which emerged in a recognizable configuration or subset of configurations every year [of the four]." Bejector and Ostracism Scores As stated previously, the rejector score is the num- ber of members in a group who reject any one girl (in situa- tional stories) one or more times. In the ninth grade, acceptance-rejection questions were asked only about Jean and Lynn, thus, a "rejector" in the ninth grade either re- jected Jean or Lynn or both. The twelfth grade question- naire was revised so that acceptance-rejection questions were asked about all three girls. Thus a rejector in the twelfth grade either rejected Jean or Michelle or Lynn (or Jean and Michelle or Jean and Lynn or Michelle and Lynn or all three, since a rejector is "any member who rejects any girl any number of times"). Rejector scores in the ninth grade ranged from .00 to .75. One group, 116, made no rejections} The-other 18 RFS groups had at least one rejector a piece. (See Table 2). Two groups in the twelfth grade, 422 and 401, also had no rejectors, with the other 13 groups having at least one re- jector a piece. 1Kelley, op. cit. 76 The ostracism score was defined as the total rejec- tions made by any one group d1v1ded by the number of members in the group, thus measuring the extent to which a group as a whole would ostrac1ze. In the twelfth grade, two acceptance- rejeotion questions were asked about each girl. Thus, any one member had the potentiality of zero to six rejections. Scores in the twelfth grade ranged irom .00 to 2.25 (See Table 3). In the ninth grade the ostracism score was modi- fied, since one acceptance-rejection question was asked about Jean and two were asked about Lynn. In order to avoid biasing and weighting the ostracxsm scores by groups that had more members rejecting Lynn than Jean, only one acceptance- rejection question regarding Lynn was measured. Scores in the ninth grade ranged from .00 to 1.00 (See Table 3). Testing the Hypotheses The "Best-Dressed" Variable It was proposed that: I. Friendship groups with high best-dressed scores will have high rejector scores, while groups With low best-dressed scores will have low rejector scores. 11. Friendship groups with high best~dressed scores Will have high ostracism scores, while groups W1th low best-dressed scores will have low ostracism SCOIGS . 77 Table 2. Group Scores of ISC, Popularity, Best-Dressed and Rejector and Ostracism Scores (Ninth Grade). RFS Groups (Ranked Ac- Popu- Best— Ostra- cording to larity Dressed Rejector cism ISC) ISC Score Score Score Score 106 25.5(H) .50(H) .00(L) .75(H) l.00(H) 108 ‘ 27.1(H) .50(H) .00(L) .25(L) .50(H) 113 27.9(H) .00(L) .00(L) .29(L) .33(L) 102B 28.3(H) .00(L) .00(L) .33(L) .33(L) 114 28.5(H) .00(L) .33(H) .33(L) .33(L) 107A 30.7(H) 12.07(H) 10.07(H) .46(H) .54(H) 116 31.0(H) .00(L) .00(L) .00(L) .00(L) 107B 31.4(H) 1.93(H) 1.43(H) .50(H) .57(H) 117 31.8(H) .00(L) .00(L) .33(L) .33(L) 103 32.5(H) .00(L) l.00(H) .33(L) .33(L) 102C 34.0(L) .83(H) .33(H) .17(L) .17(L) 111 34.0(L) 5.25(H) 4.00(H) .50(H) .75(H) 104 35.7(L) .00(L) .00(L) .13(L) .25(L) 112 37.3(L) .00(L) .00(L) .20(L) .40(L) 109 40.5(L) .00(L) .00(L) .63(H) .75(H) 115 41.0(L) .00(L) .00(L) .33(L) .67(H) 110 42.1(L) .17(H) .00(L) .33(L) .33(L) 102A 50.9(L) .00(L) .00(L) .83(H) l.00(H) 105 64.0(L) .00(L) .00(L) .25(L) .25(L) 101 66.0(L) .00(L) .00(L) .33(L) .67(H) 10 High 7 Hi h 6 High 6 Hi h 9 Hi h 10 Low 15 Low 14 Low I4 Low II Low N = 20 78 I Table 3. Group Scores of ISC, POpularity, Best-Dressed and Rejector and Ostracism Scores (Twelfth Grade). RFS Groups (Ranked Ac- POpu- Best- Ostra- cording to larity Dressed Rejector cism ISC) ISC Score Score Score Score 4078 18.4(H) l.00(H) 1.83(H) .67(H) 1.14(H) 477 25.0(H) .59(H)' .43(H) .57(H) 1.86(H) 432A 28.9(H) .38(H) .75(H) .31(L) .44(L) 414 30.2(H) .67(H) .67(H) .33(L) .67(L) 407A 30.5(H) 5.91(H) 3.73(H) .4S(H) 1.73(H) 422 31.4(H) .40(H) .20(H) .00(L) .00(L) 452 31.4(H) .00(L) .40(H) .20(L) .80(L) 417B 31.8(H) .00(L) .00(L) .20(L) .80(L) 417A 32.9(H) .00(L) .80(H) .40(L) .80(L) 460 36.0(L) .00(L) .00(L) l.00(H) 2.25(H) 432C 36.5(L) .00(L) .00(L) .44(H) l.00(H) 417C 36.9(L) .00(L) .44(H) .44(H) 1.44(H) 427 41.5(L) .00(L) .00(L) .75(H) 1.SO(H) 4323 45.0(L) .00(L) .00(L) .67(H) l.00(H) 401 62.6(L) .00(L) .00(L) .00(L) .00(L) 9 High Low 6 High Low 9 Hi h ‘ 3 Low 8 Hi h 7 Low 8 Eigh 79 When hypothesis I was tested according to ninth grade data, a Q of +.57 was obtained, indicating that perhaps a relationship does exist between the proportion of group members rejecting on the basis of appearance and the group's best-dressed score. However, examination of the 2 x 2 table High LOW BEST-DRESSED-- Rejector Score NINTH GRADE High 3 3 6 Low 3 11 14 Q = +.57 N = 20 6 14 shows that a Q of +.57 was obtained not because there was a strong relationship between high rejector scores and high best-dressed scores(50% of high rejector groups had high best- dressed scores), but because 79% of groups with low best- dressed scores had low rejector scores. Thus a weak rela- tionship exists between best-dressed scores and rejector scores. The testing of hypothesis I according to twelfth grade data yielded a Q of -.43. Thus there was no support . . High Low BEST-DRESSED Rejector—OstraCism TWELFTH GRADE Scores High 4 4 8 Low 5 2 7 Q = -°43 N = 15 for hypothesis I according to twelfth grade data. 80 The Q correlation coefficients for hypothesis II were .14 for the ninth grade and -.43 for the twelfth grade. The following is the 2 x 2 table for the 9th grade coefficient. High Low BEST-DRESSED-- Ostracism NINTH GRADE High 3 6 9 Low 3 8 ll Q = +.l4 , N = 20 6 14 Although the coefficient indicates no more than a chance cor- relation, examination of Table 2 shows that groups with the three highest best-dressed scores, 10.07, 4.00, and 1.43, all had high ostracism scores. However, of the four groups with the highest ostracism scores only one had one high best- dressed score. Ninth and twelfth grade data yielded no strong sup- port for hypotheses I and II. Explanations might be that "best-dressed groups" tried to avoid in their answers any indicants that would jus- tify other groups' criticism or that the adolescent sub- culture as a whole held a code of dress standards.and that 1In the twelfth grade each variable (best-dressed, POpularity, and ISC) will have two identical Q correlation coefficients when correlated with rejector and ostracism SOOres, since all groups having high rejector scores had hhih ostracism scores and all groups having low rejector SCOxee had low ostracism scores. 81 the code or norms varied very little from group to group within the subculture.. Also, it would be that the well- dressed groups, although as individuals held high standards of dress for themselves permitted a "wide range of depar- ture from norms, perhaps priding themselves on making large allowances for individuality and creativity." The Pepularity Variable .It was prOposed that: III. Friendship groups with high popularity scores will have high rejector scores, while groups with low. pOpularity scores will have low rejector Scores. IV. Friendship groups with high popularity scores will have high ostracism scores, while groups with low popularity scores will have low ostracism scores. I A Q of +.76 was obtained for Hypothesis III from the ninth grade data, giving no support to the "popularity" hypothesis. ' High Low Rejector Scores POPULARITY SCORES High 4 2 6 Low ' 3 11 14 Q = +.76 N = 20 7 13 The three groups with the highest popularity scores, 12.07, 5.25, and 1.93 had high rejector scores. Robert K. Merton, Social Theory and Social Struc- ture ( Glencoe, 111.: The Free Press, 1957), p. 270. 82 A Q of +.70 was obtained for hypothesis IV, indica- ting a possible relationship. Future researchers could in- High Low Ostracism Score POPULARITY SCORES High 5 4 .9 Low 2 9 11 Q = +.70 N = 20 7 13 vestigate this relationship in more detail, since Q indicates that a relationship could exist between pOpularity of a group and its rejector score. Examination of the data showed that the most popu- lar group had the sixth highest rejector score while Second most popular group had the fourth highest and the third most popular had the sixth highest. However, the three highest rejector scores belonged to groups not mentioned popular at all. From the twelfth grade data, a Q of -.11 was obtained for both "pOpularity hypotheses." These findings contradict High Low Rejector- POPULARITY SCORES-- Ostracism Scores - TWELFTH GRADE High 3 5 8 Low 3 4 7 Q = '-11 N = 15 6 9 those of the ninth grade. Did clothing become less of a criterion for admittance to the popular groups by the twelfth 83 grade? Douvan and Adelson1 indicate that the younger adoles- cent's criteria for friendship are based upon superficial traits, such as appearance and popularity, while the older adolescent chooses friends for their "deeper" characteristics and common interests and values. The findings could be interpreted to support this trend of thought. However, during analysis of the twelfth grade findings, it was found that the most pOpular and best-dressed group, 407A, made only one comment (9%) pertaining to groups judging on appearance, while an average of 61% of the other RFS groups made appearance-judgment comments, of which many ap- peared to be directed at 407A. Two explanations for the dis- crepancy between the statistical test and the comments could be feasible. The first is that the most popular group or groups realized that they were a target for appearance- judgment accusations, and thus avoided giving such answers. The other could be that the other RFS group members projected upon the popular group, their own tendency to reject on the basis of appearance. As in Sears' study of college men,2 these group members may have not been able to perceive the trait in themselves but were apt to attribute it to others. 1Douvan and Adelson, op. cit., p. 16. 2College men rated themselves and others on traits such as disorderliness, stinginess, etc. Those not percei- ving a trait, such as stinginess, attributed it to others. R. R. Sears, "Experimental Studies of Projection II: Ideas of Reference," Journal of Social Psychology, Vol. VIII (1937), pp. 389-400. 84 The ISC Variable It was proposed that: V. Friendship groups with high socio-economic scores‘ will have high rejector scores, while groups with low socio-economic scores will have low rejector scores. VI. Friendship groups with high socio-econqmic scores will have high ostracism scores, while groups with low socio-economic scores will have low ostracism scores. For hypothesis V, a Q of .00 was obtained from the ninth grade data and a Q of -.82 from the twelfth grade data, while Q coefficients of -.20 and -.82 were obtained from ninth and twelfth grade data respectively for hypothesis VI. There is no clear trend that a relationship exists. NINTH GRADE ISC SCORES High Low ' High Low Rejector Ostracism Scores Scores High 3 3 6 High 4 5 9 7 , 7 14 Low ' 6' 5 11 10 10 10 10 Q = .00 Q = "2° 20 N = 20 N 85 TWELFTH GRADE ISC SCORES High Low Rejector- Ostracism Scores High 3 5 8 Low 6 l 7 Q =-.82 N = 15 9 6 These Q statistical tests have provided an indication (pf the relationships that possibly exist or do not exist kxetnveen the variables of popularity, best-dressed and social stmatus and rejector and ostracism scores. Chapter Six dis- cusses the implications of these findings. CHAPTER V COMPARISON AND ANALYSIS OF NINTH AND TWELFTH GRADE RESPONSES The following is a summary and comparison of the responses of the 1541 girls in the ninth grade and 1382 in the twelfth grade about the situational stories. The ninth grade became the senior class of 1965. Detailed discussion of each grade's responses are contained in Appendices D for the ninth grade, and E for the twelfth grade. Each appendix is divided into four sections: 1. responses concerning the situational story of Jean who wore mismatched separates, 2. responses concerning the situational story of Michelle who wore colored bobby socks, 3. responses concerning the situational story of Lynn who had messy hair but wore expen- sive clothes, and 4. comments concerning the "judgment by appearance" syndrome of "other" groups and individuals in- cluding "popular,"_"t0p," "elite." In order to avoid "number confusion" responses will be referred to in terms of percentage of reapondents of that grade. 1Data was lost for one respondent (isolate) during the course of the longitudinal project, so percentages are based on 153 respondents. 21h actuality, there are 137 respondents since one girl (RFS member) refused to be interviewed. 86 87 Comparison and Analysis of Responses about Jean In both the ninth and twelfth grades, the first ques- tion asked the respondents was about Jean: Jean is a new girl in the ninth grade in East Lansing High School. Her appearance is neat and clean. Her favorite combinations are plaid skirts and flowered blouses. Would you consider her well-dressed? Why or why not? A similar percentage of ninth graders (94%)1 and twelfth graders (92%)2 saw Jean as not well-dressed indica- ting that perhaps there were consistent standard norms for "being well-dressed." However, 54.5% of the respondents in the twelfth grade answering "depends" or "yes" justified their answer by stressing individuality, while none of the ninth grade respondents did. A slightly higher percentage of ninth grade respon- dents (20.3%) formed critical comments about Jean than did twelfth graders (14.6%). Comments were of fairly similar type, although none of the twelfth graders made appearance impressions of "dreadful," "awful," that the ninth graders did. One twelfth grader related Jean's appearance to her actions,3 while no ninth graders did; no twelfth grader said See Appendix D for breakdown and discussion of res- ponses of ninth graders concerning Jean's being well-dressed or not. 2See Appendix E for breakdown and discussion of res- ponses of twelfth graders concerning Jean's being well-dressed or not. 3 "She'd look ridiculous and probably act in accordance.‘ 88 "doesn't care about appearance" while four ninth graders did.1 In the twelfth grade three girls (but none in the ninth) acknowledged the possibility that Jean's combinations might become fashionable at some time.2 From the above discussion, it might be inferred that the twelfth graders were somewhat more tolerant of Jean's combinations. Both ninth and twelfth grade respondents were asked if they would "invite Jean into the group." Comparison of the responses showed that a slightly larger percentage of ninth graders (60.1%) accepted her than did twelfth graders (50.4%); however, a similar percentage of ninth graders (19%) and twelfth graders (21.2%) rejected her. Twelfth graders seemed more reluctant to commit themselves to acceptance or rejection and avoided commitment by answering "depends" or "don't know." This is not only noticeable in responses to questions about Jean, but in responses concerning Michelle and Lynn. There was no significant difference in the pro- portion of RFS members, MP members or isolates rejecting Jean in the ninth grade, while in the twelfth grade a slightly higher proportion of isolates accepted and rejected. Of the respondents rejecting her in both the ninth 1 See Appendices D and E for elaboration and discussion of the actual impression comments made. See Appendix E for actual comments. 3 , . This may be misleading, Since such a higher percen- tage of RFS members (42.6%) and MP members (62.5%) did not commit themselves one way or the other. 89 l and twelfth grades, a sizeable percentage saw Jean being ac- cepted by some group other than their own. The group they saw accepting her was usually designated as "dressing the same way" or as "lower." Seventy-six per cent of the ninth graders and 69% of the twelfth graders indicated that Jean would have difficulty in being accepted because of her appearance. The high per- centage of respondents in both grades thinking that clothing would create difficulty in acceptance and making friends supports Ryan's idea that appearance can determine whether friendships are initiated. Conclusions 1. A standardized norm for what constituted being "well- dressed" existed in both the ninth and twelfth grades. 2. A moderate percentage of both ninth (20%) and twelfth (15%) graders made critical impressions of Jean be- cause of her clothing, although twelfth graders seemed somewhat more tolerant of her "individuality. 3. The majority of ninth (60.1%) and twelfth (50.4%) graders said that they would accept Jean as a group member despite her clothing, while a minority (19% and 21.2%) rejected her. Twelfth graders were more reluctant to commit themselves to acceptance or re- jection and answered "depends on personality" or "don't know" more often than ninth graders. 4. A high percentage of respondents in both grades (76% and 69%) either rejected Jean on the basis of clothing or saw her encountering some degree of dif- ficulty in being accepted or formulating friendships, indicating that adolescents may use clothing as one criterior for choosing friends. lFifty- -nine per cent and 81%, respectively, of the girls who both rejected and saw their group as rejecting. 90 Comparison and Analysis of Responses about Michelle- The respondents were presented the situational story of Michelle: Michelle recently moved to East Lansing from Califor- nia. Her first day at East Lansing High School she no- ticed that she was the only girl wearing colored bobby socks which were popular in California. She came home and told her mother that she had to buy heavy white socks ["white socks" was changed to "hose" in the twelfth grade interview] so that she would be like all the other girls. Her mother thought this was rather foolish since all her colored socks matched her outfits. Do you think it is important for Michelle to have bobby socks [hose] like the rest of the girls? A higher percentage of twelfth graders (79%) than of ninth graders (50%) thought that Michelle should get "leg wear" like the rest of the girls. In the ninth grade Mich— elle was wearing colored bobby socks while the style was "white ones," while in the twelfth grade Michelle was wearing colored bobby socks, while the style had changed to "hose." It should be considered that respondents may have viewed a greater discrepancy between colored bobby socks and nylons 'Ulan between colored and white bobby socks. In the ninth grade a much greater percentage of RFS meH‘Libers (60%) answered "yes" than did either MP members (22%) or .isolates (14%),1 thus indicating that either RFS members Efliiced greater importance on the norm or standard of "white boblqy socks" or dress than did MP members or isolates or 1Conversely, a greater percentage of isolates and MP memh>ears answered "no" than did RFS members. 91 they were more aware of what the norm or standard was. This relationship held true to a somewhat lesser degree in the twelfth grade.l Forty-one per cent of the total respondents of the ninth grade mentioned that Michelle would have difficulty in making friends, while 75% of the twelfth graders saw her encountering difficulty. Part of the larger percentage of twelfth graders seeing "difficulty" could be attributable to questions of acceptance2 that ninth graders were not given. Any responses from ninth graders about "difficulty" were given in answer to Open-ended questions. Thirty-eight per cent of the ninth graders mentioned the importance of conformity, while only 15% of the twelfth graders did. Six per cent of the ninth graders and 8% of the twelfth graders stated that conformity was unimportant or that nonconformity was advantageous. Twenty respondents in.the ninth grade and 11 in the twelfth grade suggested the Exossibility of starting a fad. This was not coded "positi— \K31y" for non-conformity, since these respondents viewed Mixzhelle's "difference" as instrumental in making everyone elsse identical or similar to Michelle. A larger percentage 05' RFS members (33.6%) mentioned conformity as important théan did isolates (11%) or MP members (9%). This relation- lEighty-two and two-tenths per cent of RFS members reEifilied "yes," while 68.8% of MP and 70% of isolates res- pOI’1c51ed "yes . " 2 h See Appendix E for the "aaceptance questions" téii: twelfth graders wage given and the responses to the que-S:‘.tions. 92 ship was negligible in the twelfth grade. From the data, it seems safe to conclude that the importance of conformity per se diminished from the ninth grade to the twelfth grade or that conformity was not as salient in the thoughts of twelfth graders as it was in the ninth graders. Forty-nine per cent of the twelfth graders and 33% of the ninth graders mentioned that Michelle's feelings might be affected negatively because her colored socks made her dif- ferent. Most frequently mentioned were feelings of "being self conscious," and "ill-at-ease." Twelfth graders reflec- ted on Michelle's feelings to support their "yes" for get- ting nylons. ‘Ninth graders were more apt to use the argument of conformity (30% of ninth graders versus 15% of twelfth graders) to justify their "yes" answers. From the responses, therefore, twelfth graders appeared to be more sensitive to or perceptive of one's feelings than ninth graders. Twelfth graders were asked if they would accept biichelle as a girl friend and into their group. Fifty-five arui five-tenths per cent accepted her as a girl friend, while 61.3% accepted her to "run with the group." Eight per cent. reqjected her as a girl friend and 11% as a group members. Mixchelle was the least rejected of the three girls in the 1 Enstuationa1.stories. (Unfortunately, since ninth graders . 1Rejectors for Jean were 19% ("run with group" in nll1th grade), 21.2% ("run with group" in twelfth grade), and 18~12% ("as girl friend" in twelfth grade). Rejectors for Igrtrz were 34.3% (Has girl friend” in ninth grade), 23.7% ‘1?\an with group" in ninth grade), 20.4% ("as girl friend” in twe=5lLfth grade) and 22.6% ("run with group" in twelfth grade). 93 were not given these questions, there is no comparison to see if the ninth graders viewing conformity as more impor- tant than twelfth graders would reject Michelle more fre- quently.) (It could be inferred from the data that "differ- ent leg wear"-was less of an infraction than mis-matched separates or messy hair, of dress norms or standards, if rejection is regarded as the overt punishment (which Homans stated was necessary for the existence of a norm)1 for g the norm violator. Generalizing more fully, it might be stated that nonconformity was less of an infraction than lack of neatness or cleanliness, and "poor taste" or lack of aesthetics, or that cleanliness or neatness and "good taste" or aesthetic appearance were more important than conformity. Conclusions ' 1. In the ninth grade and to a lesser degree in the twelfth grade, a greater proportion of RFS members answered "yes" and a lesser proportion "no" to Michelle's getting the "in" legwear than did MP members and isolates, indicating that perhaps they valued this particular standard of dress more or were more acquainted with it. 2. From the responses given, it was concluded that the importance of conformity to the respondents dimin- ished from the ninth grade to the twelfth grade. 1 . Homans, op. cit. 2It should be remembered that this study is built upon the concept that evaluation (degree of liking or dis- liking) is the joint function of the cues presented and the norms-and standards. If the cues are held constant, differ- ence in evaluation can be attributed to difference in norms (sometimes modified or linked to group characteristics). 94 3. A larger percentage of RFS members (34%) mentioned "conformity importance".than did isolates (11%) or MP members (9%) in the.ninth.grade, but this rela- tionship did not extend into the twelfth grade. 4. Twelfth grade respondents made more responses about Michelle' 3 feelings than did ninth graders, indica- ting that perhaps twelfth graders had a greater sen- 'sitivity to or awareness of feelings. 5. Michelle was the least rejected (8% and 11%) of the three girls in the situational stories. Fitting re- jection into the "evaluation slot" of the "inter- action—evaluation model" (See page 37) and viewing it as "Homan‘s punishment," it could be generalized (that the norm of conformity was less important or used less in the evaluation (situation-matching set) of an individual than was the norm of neatness or the aesthetic standard, since Michelle was Wpunished" less. Comparison.and.Analysis of Responses about Lynn The following story was presented to the ninth graders about Lynn: Lynn dresses very neatly for school. She has many ex- .pensive clothes: however, her hair is usually a mess .and unkempt. Do you think messy hair plays an important part in Lynn's appearance? Which do you think is more important--expensive clothes or neat hair? To the twelfth-grade respondents, the situational story was reworded about Lynn as follows: Lynn is a new girl in your grade. .She dresses very neatly for school. She has many expensive clothes; how- ever, her hair is usually messy and unkempt. What would you think of Lynn? :Why? Which do you think is more importnat--expensive clothes or neat hair? The twelfth grade story about Lynn differed from the ninth grade story in that respondents were asked, "What would you think of Lynn and why?" rather than "Do you think messy hair plays an important part in Lynn's appearance?" The 95 former question was open-ended and the latter was "fixed choice" or "closed." Accordingly, responses differed in type and nature, and a comparison can hardly be made between the two questions. Ninety-five per cent of the ninth graders answered "yes" that Lynn's hair played an important part, while respondents in the twelfth grade described Lynn any- where from "a nice girl" to "a lazy person." Fifty of the twelfth grade respondents or 36.5% formed negative impressions of Lynn when asked what they thought of her. The majority of the impressions concerned "her not caring about her appearance" or "her sloppiness" ori"untidiness." During the course of questioning, 29 respondents or 18.4% of the ninth graders formed negative impressions about Lynn. The majority of these reSponses also were "not caring" and "sloppy" impressions. The percentages making negative comments in the ninth and twelfth grades cannot be considered indicative of grade sentiment, since ninth graders were not asked what they thought of Lynn, but volunteered their impres- sions. However, it can be noted that Lynn's description elicited a moderate percentage of negative impressions in both grades. When asked which they thought was more important-- neat hair or exPensive clothes, 80% of the respondents in both the grades thought that neat or clean hair was more im- portant, while 7% of both grades viewed "expensive" clothes as more important. The majority of respondents (82% and 67%) 96 answering "expensive" clothes were from the lower-upper or upper-middle classes. -None were from the lower-middle or lower classes. When asked if they would like Lynn as a girl friend, 45.4% of the respondents in the ninth grade and 48.9% of the twelfth grade accepted her, while 24.3% of the ninth grade and 20.4% of the twelfth grade rejected her. When asked if they would inVite her to run with the group, 57.2% of the ninth grade and 47.7% of the twelfth grade accepted her, while 23.7% of the ninth grade and 22.6% of the twelfth grade rejected her. Lynn had a higher average of rejection (22.8%) than did either Jean (19.5%) or Michelle (9.5%), indicating that "neatness" was perhaps a more powerful norml than either "conformity" (white socks or nylons) or aesthe- tic appearance (matching patterns). Thirty—eight and eight-tenths per cent of the ninth grade respondents and 42.4% of the twelfth grade respondents were double acceptors of Lynn, while 17.8% of the ninth grade and 17.1% of the twelfth grade were double rejectors. Thus there was very little difference in the acceptance and re- jection of Lynn between grades nine and twelve. lViewing rejection as punishment for violation of a :norm, "neatness" could be said to be more powerful Since it :precipitated (cues held constant) more "punishment responses" or "punishment evaluations" than did norms of "conformity" or “aesthetics." Cues were held constant within the stories fer each individual respondent and among the stories there «was constancy since each story (cue) portrayed a girl viola- .ejggfing an accepted mode of dress or appearance. 97 Conclusions 1. The description of Lynn with her "messy hair" yielded a moderate percentage (26.5% and 18.4%) of negative impressions in both grades. 2. Eighty per cent of the respondents in both grades thought that neat or clean hair was more important than expensive clothes, while seven per cent in both grades thought expensive clothes were more important. The identical percentages point out that probably the values of Hneatness of this particular adolescent subculture remained constant from the ninth to the twelfth grade. 3. Respondents viewing "expensive" clothes as important were predominantly of the lower-upper or upper- middle classes, while none were from the lower- middle or lower classes. Thus it was individuals "approaching the upper class or half-way into it" who viewed expensive clothes as important. 4. There was almost no difference between ninth and twelfth grades in the proportion of respondents ac- cepting and rejecting Lynn. Comparison and Analysis_9f "Popular! Some, and Other Group" Responses Ninety-four or 61.4% of the ninth grade respondents and 70 or 51.1% of the twelfth grade respondents mentioned that some or certain groups or individuals (including popular, tOp, or best-dressed) judged or rejected on the basis of appearance. Nineteen respondents in the ninth grade (12.4%) and seven respondents in the twelfth grade (5.1%) criticized the "popular group" for accepting and rejecting individuals on the basis of appearance. Other respondents (14 of the ninth grade and seven of the twelfth grade) men- tioned the "top group," "social climbers," "elite kids," "best-dressed," as rejecting on the basis of appearance. 98 Sixty-one ninth graders (40%) stated that "many" or "lots" of groups and individuals rejected on appearance, while 46 twelfth graders (34%) stated the same. Thus, 10% more ninth graders than twelfth graders mentioned groups or individuals as rejecting on the basis of appearance; also, ninth grade respondents were more Spe- cific in their "accusations" and referred to "pOpular, top, or beet-dressed groups" more often than did twelfth graders. However, twelfth grade respondents mentioned "materialistic groups" while ninth graders did not. An interesting phenomenon occurred during the twelfth grade interviewing--only one member of RFS 407A (group named most often as both best-dressed and most pOpular) mentioned anything about groups or individuals rejecting on the basis of appearance. It could be theorized that many "accusations" were directed at this group, 407A, in particu- lar, since it would be unlikely that group members would direct criticism at themselves. It also seems unlikely that this "elite" group would be ignorant of the "rejection by appearance syndrome," since 45.5% of the members were rejec- tors making a total of 19 rejections (third highest ostracism score of the 15 groups.) Conclusions 1. A majority of both ninth graders and twelfth graders (61% and 51%) mentioned the "rejection by appearance syndrome" of "pOpular," "top," or "some" groups or individuals. A slightly larger proportion of ninth graders made comments of this nature, while twelfth graders described "materialistic" groups or general- ized about rigid group acceptance standards. 99 The most popular and best-dressed group of the twelfth grade, RFS 407A, directed no comments of "rejection by appearance" to any groups or indivi- duals (one individual did comment that some groups had higher grooming standards than others) while an average of 61% of each RFS group made comments of this nature. This fact pOlntS out the possibility that "accusations" were directed at RFS 407A, Since group members would be unlikely to direct criticism at themselves. CHAPTER VI SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH This study was a part of the longitudinal project and last of a series of theses pertaining to the project. This study was built around the "evaluation hypothesis model" that the cues presented to the perceiver and the perceptual set of the observer dually influence the evaluation of the object or the person being observed. Norms were substituted for perceptual set, and since group characteristics affect the development of norms, group characteristics were used in place of norms, since characteristics were measurable while norms were not. Situational stories of three different girls, Jean, Michelle, and Lynn, violating dress modes were the cues in the model, while group ostracism and rejector scores were 'bermed "evaluation" and were obtained from questions asking if a respondent would accept Jean, Michelle and Lynn. Group Characteristics that were measured in this story were pOpu- larity, if named best-dressed, and Index of Social Class (ISC). The following hypotheses were drawn up and tested by time use of Yule's Q. (The Q for each hypothesis appears in 'parentheses.) I. Friendship groups with high best-dressed scores will have high rejector scores, while groups with low 100 II. III. IV. VI. 101 best-dressed scores will have low rejector scores (+.57 and -.43 for ninth and twelfth grades, respec- tively). Friendship groups with high best-dressed scores will have high ostracism scores, while groups with low best-dressed scores will have low ostracism scores (.14 and -.43 for ninth and twelfth grades, respec- tively). Friendship groups with high popularity scores will have high rejector scores, while groups with low pOpularity scores will have low rejector scores (+.76 and -.11 for ninth and twelfth grades, respec- tively). Friendship groups with high popularity scores will have high ostracism scores, while groups with low popularity scores will have low ostracism scores (+.70 and -.11 for ninth and twelfth grades, respec- tively). Friendship groups with high socio-economic scores will have high rejector scores, while groups with low socio-economic scores will have low rejector scores (.00 and -.82 for ninth and twelfth grades, respectively). Friendship groups with high socio-economic scores will have high ostracism scores, while groups with low socio-economic scores will have low ostracism scores (.20 and -.82 for ninth and twelfth grades, reSpectively). 102 As indicated above by Yule's Q, there was little statistical support for hypotheses I and II, although future researchers might find it fruitful to explore this question" again since ninth grade data indicated a weak correlation between group best-dressed scores and proportion of group members rejecting. Ninth grade data supported hypotheses III and IV, yielding Q's of .76 and .70 respectively. However, twelfth grade data showed an absence of correlation (Q's of -.11) between group popularity scores and rejector and ostracism scores. Comments during the course of interviewing in both grades indicated that a majority of the reSpondents thought that particular groups or individuals, with emphasis on "popular," rejected individuals on the basis of appearance. Although there was a smaller proportion of comments made in the twelfth grade about "popular" and “others" rejecting, they were intensely stated. Upon examination in terms of the evaluation hypothesis model, difference between the ninth and twelfth grade data on popularity scores and ostracism and rejector scores lies in the evaluation. Ninth grade Twelfth Grade .tics held constant ev luatio~ of re ection 103 Since the cues were held constant for both grades and characteristic variables were measured by the same cri- teria for both grades, extraneous variables appear to have influenced the different evaluation outcomes of the two grades. Douvan and Adelsonl offer one explanation that as adolescents mature, they develop friendships based on "deeper" qualities rather than "superficial" ones. Future researchers might in- vestigate the discrepancy between ninth (younger adolescents) and twelfth (older adolescents) grade criteria for friendship. Hypotheses V and VI yielded no supportive findings, thus indicating that social class did not influence the selection of friends based on clothing and appearance. Since social status of a group was measured according to community or "societal" standards, the variable may have been meaning- less in the context of the high school, since a different social structure and hierarchy may have existed in the high school, based on entirely different criteria. From the analysis of the data of the two grades, the following conclusions were drawn: 1. A moderate percentage (approximately 20%)of both‘ ninth and twelfth grade respondents rejected indi- viduals solely on the basis of their appearance and clothing. 2. Descriptions of individuals' appearance and clothing were alone sufficient to elicit negative impressions of.the individuals. 3. Respondents associated feelings of "uncomfortability, embarrassment, and self-consciousness" with clothing that did not conform to the accepted adolescent mode. 4. Proportionately, isolates in the ninth grade placed less importance on clothing and conformity, and .J ‘3.1. L .- 104 rejected individuals less often on the basis of appearance than friendship group members. 5. There tended to be a diminishing emphasis upon con- formity from the ninth grade to the twelfth grade. 6. The majority of respondents were quick to point out that "particular" or many groups or individuals judged on the basis of clothing. Since there was no substantial support for the hypo-' theses that group characteristics of popularity,1 social status, and dress were related to evaluation (rejection) of- unknown persons, some plausible, but hypothetical, explana- tions, should be considered. One is that perhaps dress codes or norms were tena- ciously held by the entire adolescentsubculture2 (in this case, one grade or the whole school) and that differences in these standards among groups (sub-sub cultures) was minute.3 There- fore the group (sub-sub culture) characteristics of popularity, social status, anddress had-little relationship to differences in evaluation of individuals violating the dress norms. In the ninth grade, and to varying degrees in the twelfth grade, isolates placed less importance upon clothing and appearance and were less rejecting of individuals viola- ting dress than RFS members. It may be hypothesized that since the "basis Of the established norms, such as stereotypes 1 There was support for hypotheses III and IV concer- ning popularity from ninth grade data. 2 - Smith, op. cit., states that “dress styles for in- school youth (the dominant middle class emphasis) tend to be uniform in a given region and time period," p. 11. 3Sebald, op. cit., indicates that sub-sub cultures' (groups) can exist within the larger adolescent subculture. 105 fashions, conventions, customs and values, is the common frames of reference as,a product of the contact of indivi- duals"1 that isolates perhaps did not share the common frame of referenCe that RFS members did since they supposedly would have less contact. Still, in the vein of the adolescent sub-culture as a whole sharing norms, differences between RFS groups perhaps could be attributed to the differences in cohesiveness of the groups. If we assume that each RFS group holds the adoles- cent sub-culture norms or standards for dress, we can pre- dict that a group which is highly cohesive (highly attractive to members with strong forces acting upon the members to re- main part of the group)3 would “tend to reject those who deviate from group opinion more than Lo-Co [low cohesion] groups [would] do,"4 in order to accomplish its goals and maintain itself.5 Thus a highly cohesive group might be lQuotation from Muzafer Sherif in Abraham Zaleznik and David Moment, The Dynamics of Interpersonal Behavior (New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1964), p. 134. 2 ' . . It also should be conSidered that they were isolates because they didn't share the norms or because of an inter- action of the two. 3Dorwin Cortwright and Alvin Zandr, Group Dynamics: Research and Theory, 2nd ed. (Evanston, 111.: Row, Peterson, and Co., 1960). p. 169. 4Robert L. Golembiewski, The Small Group: An Analysis of Research Concepts and 0perations‘(Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1962), p. 165. 5Cortwright and Zander,op. cit. 106 more apt (than a less cohesive group) to reject Jean, Lynn, or Michelle, since the members themselves conform or adhere more strongly to group standards (in this case, sub-cultural standards) than do less-cohesive group1 members. In order to teSt this theory the same modified evaluation-hypotheSis model (Figure 2, p. 38) could be used-- that is if the cues (situational stories) remained constant, evaluation (rejection) would be directly related to group characteristics, in this case the characteristic of cohesive- ness. Another explanation might be that respondents an- swered in terms of their reference groups (groups aspire to be in) which may or may not have been their membership RFS 2 groups. According to Harold Kelly, a reference group can have two functions, depending upon its definition. When "reference group" is used to denote a group in which the in- dividual is motivated to gain or maintain acceptance, it serves a "normative function" or norm-setting and norm enforce- ment (reward or punishment). The second reference group definition is a "group which the person uses as a reference point in making evaluations of himself or others," lL. Berkowitz, "Group Standards, Cohesiveness, and Productivity," Human Relations, Vol. 7 (1954), p. 516. 2Sherif and Sherif, op. cit., state that "there may be a discrepancy between the individual's actual membership group and.the reference group which he uses to regulate his standards and aspirations . " 3Harold H. Kelly, "Two Functions of Reference Groups," Elsie Studies in Social Psychology, ed. by H. Proshansky and 3- Seidenberg (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, l965),p.211. 107 and thus the reference group functions as a standard or com- parison point, referred to as the comparison-function. A researcher in this instance would have to examine unreciprocated choices in order to determine the respondent's reference group, or perhaps ask a question such as "What group or what individual would you most like to be friends with?" A researcher could still use the interaction- evaluation model (Figure 1) for joint reference group defi- nition, changing only the membership group to reference group. For example, the answers of all respondents aspiring to the most popular group could be examined to see if the hypotheses of this study were supported. Hartley and Hartley2 maintain that reference groups are of more impor- tance in determining a person's behavior and attitudes than his membership group while Sherif and Sherif state "that the individual's standards and aspirations are regulated in relation to the reference group to which he relates himself." Another consideration is that a group acting or answering as a unit would differ from individual members reSponding separately to questions. Using the same type questionnaire of this study, a researcher could administer lIbid., pp. 210-14. 2Eugene L. Hartley and Ruth E. Hartley, Fundamentals of Social Psychology (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1952), P. 470. 3 . . . Sherif and Sherif, op. cit., p. 177. 108 the questionnaire first to group members individually, and then in a lab setting ask the group to discuss and come to a conclusion (vote) about the acceptance or rejection of Jean, Michelle, or Lynn.1 A comparison of the two would show if group members responded differently within the group setting than when they answered individually. Psychological implications should not be overlooked, however, they remain outside the domain of this sociological investigation. However, a challenge to future researchers of both the psychological and sociological aspects of clothing might be Dosselyn's proposition that peer groups are "com- posed of individuals at approximately the same emotional level of development."2 This might have far-reaching impli- cations concerning adolescents' judgment by clothing since younger, immature adolescents, according to Douvan and Adel- son3are prone to judging friends (and comparing oneself to friends) in terms of superficial qualities. Future researchers need not abandon the concept of "adolescent group influence on dress,” for certainly there was an underlying current of feeling from members' responses Perhaps a mirrow-window could be used by researchers to tabulate how each member voted when in his group, without being observed. ' 2 Irene M. Dosselyn, M. C., The Adolescent and His World (New York: Family Service Association of America, 1952), P. 39. 3Douvan and Adelson, op. cit., p. 186. 109 that their groups do influence their actions. One girl, for example, said, "If one girl in my group invited someone into the group who wasn't accepted then the girl who did the inviting would be snubbed for a while." According to Sherif and Sherif, the peer group is the "prime source of experience. It is an arbiter and dispenser of acceptance and rejection. It tells the adolescent what is done, what is acceptable and what is not acceptable."1 Fu- ture researchers should find it fruitful to explore and examine this avenue again in terms of dress and dress modes and standards. 1Muzafer Sherif and Carolyn W. Sherif, eds., Problems of Youth: Transition to Adulthood in a Changing World (Chicago: Aldine Publishing Company, 1965), p. 22. SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY Books ~ érelson, Bernard. Content Analysis in Communication Re- search. 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"Peer Group Friendships in One Class of High School Girls: Change and Stability," unpublished dis- sertation for the degree Doctor of PhilOSOphy, Michigan State University, 1966. Kittles, Emma. "The Importance of Clothing as a Status Sym- bol among College Students," unpublished dissertation for the degree Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, 1961. Littrell, Mary Bishop. "Reference Groups and Isolates: A Study of Clothing and Appearance Opinions," unpublished thesis for the degree Master of Arts, Michigan State University, 1968. Rosencranz, Mary Lou. "The Application of a Projective Tech- nique for Analyzing Clothing Awareness, Clothing Symbols, and the Range of Themes Associated with Clothing Behav- ior," unpublished dissertation for the degree Doctor of Philosophy, Michigan State University, 1960. Rosencranz, Mary Lou. "A Study of Interest in Clothing among Selected Groups of Married and Unmarried Young Women," unpublished thesis for the degree Master of Arts, Mich- igan State University,l968. Vener, Arthur M. "Stratification Aspects of Clothing Impor- tance," unpublished thesis for the degree Master of Science, Michigan State College, 1953. Wass, Betty. "Clothing as Related to Role Behavior of Ninth Grade Girls," unpublished thesis for the degree Master of Arts, Michigan State University, 1962. Williams, Madelyn. "Opinions on Clothing, Appearance, and Social Acceptance as Factors in Group Cohesion of Ninth Grade Girls," unpublished thesis for the degree Master of Arts, Michigan State University, 1963. Technical Bulletins Form, William, and Stone, Gregory. "The Local Community Clothing Market: A Study of the Social and Social Psych- ological Contexts of Shopping," Technical Bulletin 247, Michigan State University Agricultural Experiment Station, 1957. and . "The Social Significance of Clothing in Occupational Life," Technical Bulletin 247, Michigan State University Agricultural Experiment Station, June, 1955. 118 Ostermeier, Arlene Bjorngaard, and Eicher, Joanne B. "Clothing and Appearance as Related to Social Class and Social Acceptance of Adolescent Girls," Quarterly Bulletin Michigan State University Agricultural Experiment Station, Vol. XLVIII, No. 3, February, 1966, pp. 431-36. Ryan, Mary Shaw. "Psychological Effects of Clothing III: Report of Interviews with a Selected Sample of College Women," Cornell University Agricultural Experiment Sta- tion Bulletin No. 900 (Ithaca, N. Y.), 1953. Wass, Betty M., and Eicher, Joanne B. "Clothing as Related to Role Behavior of Teen-age Girls," Quarterly Bulletin (Michigan State University Agricultural Experiment Station), Vol. XLVII, No. 2, November, 1964, pp. 206- 13. Newspaper Articles Detroit News. "Mail," February 19, 1970, "The Other Section," p. 9. Monographs éfl/Bonney, M. E. "Popular and Unpopular Children: A Socio- metric Study," Sociometry Monograph, No. 9 (New York: Beacon House), 1947. Speeches and Proceedings Secord, Paul F. "Social Factors in Person Perception,” Pro- ceedings of National Clothing and Textiles Seminar of College Teachers of Clothing and Textiles, Reno, Nevada, August, 1965, p. 54. APPENDIX A APPENDIX A BACKGROUND QUEST IONNAIRE WI-{IAT THIS IS ALL ABOUT You may recall that Michigan State University has been doing a study of the opinions of young people in Michi- gan. Since we are still working on the study, we would like to see what has happened to the people in your grade. Therefore, we would like you to fill out again the part about yourself and your class. You can help us best by answering the following ques- tions as clearly and carefully .as you can. If there is some- thing you do not understand, askguestions. You will be helped as much as possible. . This information is confidential. No one you know, including your teachers, will ever see what you have written. 1 . Your name , , last first middle 2 . Address 3- When were you born? I I Month Day Year What is the name and location of the last grade school you attended? 119 120 5. How many clubs or organizations in school and outside of school do you belong to? In School Outside None ' None One One Two Two Three Three Four or more Four or more 6. Please list the clubs and organizations you belong to: .1 .9 7. The people with whom we share secrets and spend most of our time are usually referred to as our "best friends." Write the names of your two "best girl friends" in the 12th grade in the East Lansing High School. (If you only have one person you consider a "best friend," write her name only, and if you have no one, leave the space blank.) 1. 2. If you have more than two "best girl friends" in the 12th grade, write their names in the space below. If your "best girl friends" are in another grade, write their names in the space below. Name Grade If your "best girl friends" are in another school, write their names in the space below. Name Name of School Grade 10. ll. 12. l3. 14. 121 What church do you go to? How many living brothers and sisters do you have? (Cir- cle the correct number on each line, and 0 if none.) Brothers 0 1 2 3 4 or more Sisters 0 1 2 3 4 or more Who contributes most to the financial support of your family? Your father Your mother Some other person (Explain who this person is. For example, "My brother," "my uncle") ' How far did this person mentioned above go in school? No schooling Some grade school Graduated from grade school Some high school Graduated from high school Some college Graduated from college Don't know Other (Explain) What does this person do for a living? (Write in the complete name or title of his or her job, not the company he or she works for.) Describe as accurately as possible what this person makes or does on the job. (For example: he supervises the work of 15 office clerks; he sells from door to door; he operates a farm of 160 acres, etc.) Does any other person contribute to the financial support of your family? Yes No If yes, explain who (mother, father, brother, etc.) ‘What does this person do? \ _l APPENDIX B 30. 31. APPENDIX B INTERVIEW SCHEDULE: SITUATION STORIES l. Ninth Grade Jean is a new girl in the ninth grade in East Lansing High School. Her appearance is neat and clean. Her favorite combinations are plaid skirts and flowered blouses. Would you conSIder her well dressed? Yes No Why or why not? Would you invite her into your group even if you do not feel she is well-dressed? Yes NO Do you think everyone in your group would agree with you? Yes No Do you think all the groups in school would do the same as your group? Yes No Why do you think so? Michelle recently moved to East Lansing from California. Her first day at East Lansing High School she noticed that she was the only girl wearing colored bobby socks which were popular in California. She came home and told her mother that she had to buy heavy white socks so that she would be like all the other girls. Her mother thought this was rather foolish since all her colored socks matched her outfits. 31. 32. 124 Continued Do you think it is important for Michelle to have bobby socks like the other girls? No Yes Why or why not? If she does not get heavy white bobby socks, what dif- ference do you think it will make? Why do you feel this way? Lynn dresses very neatly for school. She has many ex- pensive clothes; however, her hair is usually messy and unkempt. Do you think messy hair plays an important part in Lynn's appearance? No Yes Why or why not? What do you think is more important--expensive clothes or neat hair? Would you like to have Lynn as your girl friend? Yes NO Would you invite her to run around with your group? Yes No Do you think everyone in your group would agree with you? Yes No Why do you think so? Do you think all the groups in school would do the same as your group? Yes NO 32. 30. 31. 125 Continued Why do you think so? 2.. Twelfth Grade Jean is a new girl in the twelfth grade. Her appearance is neat and clean. Her favorite combinations are plaid skirts and flowered blouses. Would you consider her well dressed? Yes No Why or why not? Would you like to have Jean as your girl friend? Yes No Would you invite her to run around with your group? Yes NO Do you think everyone in your group would agree with you? Yes No Why do you think so? Do you think all the groups in school would do the same as your group? Yes NO Why do you think so? Michelle recently moved to East Lansing from California. Her-first day at school she noticed that she was the only girl wearing colored bobby socks which were popular in California. She came home and told her mother that she had to buy hose so that she would be like all the other girls. Her mother thought this was rather fool- ish. 32. 126 Do you think it is important for Michelle to have hose like the other girls? No Yes Why or why not? If she dOes not get and wear hose, what difference do you think it will make in school? Why do you feel this way? Would you like to have Michelle as your girl friend?- Yes No Would you invite her to run around with your group? Yes No Do you think everyone in your group would agree with you if she does not get the hose? Yes No Why do you think so? Do you think all the groups in school would do the same as your group? Yes NO Why do you think so? Lynn is a new girl in your grade. She dresses very neatly for school. She has many expensive clothes; how- ever, her hair is usually messy and unkempt. What would you think of Lynn? Why? Which do you think is more important--expensive clothes or neat hair? Would you like to have Lynn as your girl friend? Yes "_ 32. 127 Continued Would you invite her to run around with your group? Yes No Do you think everyone in your group would agree with you? Yes No Why do you think so? Do you think all the groups in school would do the same as your group? Yes No Why do you think so? APPENDIX C APPENDIX C BREAKDOWN OF GROUP ISC, BEST-DRESSED, POPULARITY REJECTOR AND OSTRACISM SCORES BY INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS 1. Ninth Grade Indiv. Popula- Best- Rejections3 Code ISC rityl Dressed of . No. Score Score Score Jean Lynn RFS 101 106 66 107 62 x x 108 70 Group ISC 66.0 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .33 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .67 RFS 102A 044 48 x 045 40.5 x 048 68 X 046 50 - x 047 46 x x 062 53 Group ISC 50.9 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .83 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score 1.00 1Number of times mentioned most popular. 2Number of times mentioned best-dressed. 3"X" designates that the girl (Jean or Lynn was 129 Group ISC 32.5 Group Popularity .00 Group Best-Dressed 1.00 Indiv. Popula- Best- Rejections Code ISC rity Dressed of No. Score Score Score Jean Lynn RFS 102B 061 33 x 063 26 060 26 Group ISC 28.3 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .33 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .33 RFS 102C 075 35 2 1 074 35 l 076 29 077 30 1 x 138 45 012 30 1 1 Group ISC 34 Group Rejector Group Popularity .83 Score .17 Group Best-Dressed .33 Group Ostracism Score .17 RFS 103 035 12 4 x 064 31 081 30 2 082 39 083 43 x ,085 40 Group Rejector Score .33 Group Ostracism Score .33 rejected by the respondent. Although Lynn could have been rejected twice by the respondent, the number of times she was rejected by the member is not recorded, in order that the os- tracism score would not be biased by members rejecting Lynn twice. 130 Indiv. Popula- Best- Rejections Code ISC rity Dressed of No. Score Score Score Jean Lynn RFS 104 001 30 002 32 005 43 006 43 033 41.5 131 29 133 33 153 34 x x Group ISC 35.7 Group Personality .00 Group Best-Dressed .00 RFS 105 101 75 1* 102 66 103 70 1* 104 45 Group ISC 64 Group Popularity .00 Group Best-Dressed .50* RFS 106 084 19 090 35 2 098 21 130 27 Group ISC 25.5 Group Popularity .50 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Rejector Score .13 Group Ostracism Score .25 x Group Rejector Score .25 Group Ostracism Score .25 x x x x Group Rejector Score .75 Group Ostracism Score ‘ 1.00 *RFS 105's Best-Dressed Score was not used in the best-dressed rankings of groups since members mentioned best- dressed were named not dressed right more often. 131 Indiv. Popula- Best- Rejections Code ISC rity Dressed of No. Score Score Score Jean Lynn RFS 107A 041 43 16 4 x x 039 25 23, 7 x 123 34 3 4 42 35 8 9 x 122 35 30 5 91 35 5 5 93 26 15 x 119 21 2 10 43 21 23 25 124 43 27 61 x 142 27 x 020 22 1 119 32 4 1 Group ISC 30.7 Group Rejector Group Popularity 12.07 Score .46 Group Best-Dressed 10.07 Group Ostracism Score .54 RFS 107B 038 33 4 10 x 092 33 x x 036 45 10 l x 121 49. 3 2 089 16 l 126 22. 8 5 088 40 x 125 14 087 18 l x 118 25 l 086 16. x 016 46 094 39 l 095 43 x Group ISC 31.4 Group Rejector Group Popularity 1.93 Score .50 Group Best-Dressed 1.43 Group Ostracism 0. Score .57 132 Indiv. Popula- Best- Rejections Code ISC rity Dressed of- No. Score Score Score Jean Lynn RFS 108 008 23 1 010 19 l 011 35 013 31.5 x x Group ISC 27.1 Group Rejector Group Popularity .50 Score .25 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .50 RFS 109 051 43 052 33 x 053 43 x x 054 40 055 45 x 057 40 x 139 33 140 47 x Group ISC 40.5 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .63 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .75- RFS 110 028 72 x 029 47 030 27.5 071 30 1 072 50 073 26 x Group ISC 42.1 Group Rejector Group Popularity .17 Score .33 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .33 133 Indiv. Popula- Best- Rejections Code ISC rity Dressed of No. Score Score Score Jean, Lynn RFS 111 026 48 1 x 027 43 x x 034 33 20 1 037 12 1 14 Group ISC 34 Group Rejector Group Popularity 5.25 Score .50 Group Best-Dressed 4.0 Group Ostracism Score .75 RFS 112 025 37 080 37 022 27.5 023 34 024 51 x x Group ISC 37.3 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .20 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .40 RFS 113 009 32 x 065 28 066 27 x 067' 30 069 26 070 31 078 21 Group ISC 27.9 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 . Score .29 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .29 134 Indiv. Popula- Best- Rejections Code ISC rity Dressed of No. Score Score Score Jean Lynn RFS 114 134 37.5 x 135 26 136 22 1 Group ISC 28.5 Group Rejector Group Popularity 00 Score .33 Group Best-Dressed .33 Group Ostracism Score .33 RFS 115 068 54 129 19 x x 141 50 Group ISC 41 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .33 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .67 RFS 116 143 33 144 41 152 19 Group ISC 31 Group Rejector Group Popularity 00 Score .00 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .00- RFS 117 056 31.5 x 159 27.5 148 36.5 Group ISC 31.8 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .33 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .33 135 2. Twelfth~eradg Indiv. Popula- Best- Rejections of Code ISC rity Dressed Mich- No. Score Score Score Jean elle Lynn RFS 401 047 46 106 76 048 68 refused to answer questions 108 70 062 53 Group ISC 62.6 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .00 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .00 RFS 407A 038 33 l 3 093 26 23 3 040 22 l 1* 036 45 4 1 l 2 114 30 8 9 121 49.5 1 089 16 l 1 1 205 26 039 12 13 21 2 2 019 41 5 122 35 15 2 2 2 Group ISC 30.5 Group Rejector Group Popularity 5.91 Score .45 Group Best-Dressed 3.73 Group Ostracism Score 1.73 RFS 407B 126 14.5 2 3 120 30 1 l 1 208 26 2 1 406 16 l 2 2 037 12 1 4 1 035 12 l 1 *Number indicates how many times girl was rejected. There were questions about each girl that could elicit rejection responses. 136 Indiv. Popula- Best- Rejections of Code ISC rity Dressed Mich- No. Score Score 4yScore Jean elle Lynn Group ISC 18.4 Group Rejector Group Popularity 1.00 Score .67 Group Best-Dressed 1.83 Group Ostracism Score 1.14 RFS 414 130 27 134 37.5 135 26 2 2 Group ISC 30.2 Group Rejector Group Popularity .67 Score .00 Group Best-Dressed .67 Group Ostracism Score .00 RFS 417A 002 32 067 35 069 26 1 070 31 099 26 078 21 l 065 33 8 009 32 2 404 48 2 2 055. 45 Group ISC 32.9 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .40 Group Best-Dressed .80 Group Ostracism Score .80- RFS 417B 096 36 071 26 058 25 204 38 153 34 2 2 Group ISC 31.8 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .20 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score .80 137 Indiv. Popula- Best— Rejections of Code ISC rity Dressed Mich- No. Score Score Score Jean elle Lynn RFS 417C 049 43 2 050 57 149 45 4 2 2 059 27.5 056 31.5 1 148 36.5 022 27.5 2 2 2 309 31 308 33 Group ISC 36.9 Group Popularity Group Best-Dressed 060 061 139 142 216 56 33 29 27 12 Group ISC 31.4 Group Popularity Group Best—Dressed 016 026 094 095 46 38 39 43 Group ISC 41.5 Group Popularity .00 RFS 422 1 1 .40 RFS 427 .00 Group Best-Dressed Group Rejector Score .44 Group Ostracism Score 1.44 Group Rejector Score .40 Group Ostracism Score .20 1 1 2 2 Group Rejector Score .75 Group Ostracism Score 1.50 138 Indiv. Popula- Best- Rejections of: Code ISC rity Dressed Mich- No. Score Score Score Jean .elle Lynn RFS 432A 018 45 1 1 080 16 ' 218 47 1 407 16 2 306 31 084 19 l 090 27 081 30 1 082 44 2 100 26 017 12 p . 1 215 30 1 143 33 136 22 4 1 083 43 1 4 2 214 21 2 Group ISC 28.9 Group Rejector Group Popularity .38 Score .31 Group Best-Dressed .75 Group Ostracism Score .44 RFS 432B 028 72 131 29 1 305 34 2 Group ISC 45 *Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .67 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score 1.00 RFS 432C 001 30 1 2 033 41.5 151 38 068 42 2 1 044 48 1 147 30 2 141 50 129 19 012 30 139 Indiv. Popula— Best- Rejections of Code ISC rity Dressed~ Mich— No. Score Score Score Jean elle Lynn Group ISC 36.5 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score .44 Group Best-Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score 1.00 RFS 452 027 43 1 066 27 113 30 301 39 l 2 2 307 18 Group ISC 31.4 Group Rejector Group Popularity Score Group Best-Dressed Group Ostracism Score RFS 460 023 34 1 402 34 2 403 26 1 2 405 50 l 2 Group ISC 36 Group Rejector Group Popularity .00 Score 1.00 Group Best—Dressed .00 Group Ostracism Score 2.25 RFS 477 087 18 1 1 1 1 086 16 2 2 2 088 40 2 115 29 4 2 2 118 -25 125 14 206 33 Group ISC 25 Group Rejector Group Popularity .59 Score .57 Group Best-Dressed .43 Group Ostracism Score 1.86 'APPENDIX D APPENDIX D. FINDINGS OF THE NINTH GRADE The following is a more complete and detailed account of the responses of ninth graders given about the situational stories, as discussed in Chapter Four, "Comparison and Analy- sis of Ninth and Twelfth Grade Responses." Dl Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Jean The first question asked the reSpondents was: Jean is a new girl in the ninth grade in East Lansing High School. Her appearance is neat and clean. Her favorite combinations are plaid skirts and flowered blouses. Would you consider her well-dressed? Why or why not? Of the 1531 respondents, 144 felt that Jean was not well-dressed, commenting that the combinations did not match. Thirty-one of these respondents formed critical impressions of Jean, although six of these were appearance impressions of "gaudy," "hideous," "awful," "shocking," "dreadful," and "wierd." Of the other 25, 14 saw her having "poor taste"; six questioned her "common sense" or "brains,' with one com- menting, "makes me wonder about her grades"; four didn't think she cared about her appearance; and one saw her not lActually, 154 girls (all of the girls in the ninth grade) were questioned, however, the data on one girl was lost during the longitudinal study. 140 141 1 being "well-liked except by a bad group." Only two girls considered Jean well-dressed. (Both of these girls were mentioned by others as "not dressed right," one 15 times and the other 11 times). Three thought she was well-dressed, if neat and clean, while four stated that it depended on the combinations. The next question was stated, "Would you invite her into your group even if you do not feel she is well-dressed?" Fifty-five of the respondents gave an unqualified "yes" that they would invite Jean into their group, while 37 others said that they would if she was nice or friendly. Thirty-one said that it depended--either on Jean or on whether the group as a whole wanted to invite her. Twenty-nine said they wouldn't ask her. (Twelve of these said that they might if she changed.)2 Of the 92 girls accepting Jean, 52 or 58% saw their groups in full accord with acceptance, while 36 or 39% felt that not everyone in their group would agree with the accep-r tance.3 Girls who saw not everyone in their groups agreeing with their acceptance usually cited Jean's appearance as the 1Of the girls making critical impressions, 15 accep~ ted Jean, seven answered "depends" and nine rejected Jean, when they were asked if they would ask Jean to run with their group. 2 . . One girl was not asked the acceptance question. 3Four girls (accepting Jean) answered "don't know" or "depends" to the question of their group agreeing with their acceptance. 142 cause for group dissonance. Typical comments about members of their groups were: "They would be embarrassed to go around with someone different from most people." "To some of them, clothes mean a lot." "They're touchy on how they look." “Some are more interested in appearance than person- ality." "Some of the girls feel that they all have to be dres- sed nice." "They won't accept someone if not wearing what they have on." A few girls, however, gave generalized reasons such as, "All have different opinions," and "always someone in a crowd who would not agree." Of the 29 girls1 rejecting Jean, 22 saw everyone in their groups agreeing, while three were unsure and four saw not everyone in the group agreeing with the rejection. How- ever, of the 22 who saw their group agreeing with their re- jection, 13 of them saw Jean being accepted by some group: "Some might like how she dresses and looks." "She will go into group as type of person she really is; to some peOple, it doesn't matter what they wear." "She would finally be accepted into one of the groups." "Probably the lower group would accept her." "Some of the girls who are really bad might take her." "Some groups would get along nicely with her (groups that wear clothes similar to hers)." "There are some groups in our school that dress like that already." "She'd probably go around with other kids who dress sim- ilar to that." "No, there is a group in this school--don't care if neat and clean; just best kind of clothes they can find." "There are others like her. Probably wouldn't make any difference to them." 1Of the 29 girls rejecting, 21 were RFS members, three were mutual pair members, and five were isolates. 143 "Lower social class (reputation not good, dress not good) would accept. They often dress like that." "All but the group.wou1d reject her. They would probably welcome her." "Some that don't dress as well might accept her." Of the 92 accepting Jean, 77 or 84% saw Jean having some degree of difficulty in making friends or being accep- ted. Seventy or 76% related it to clothing. Typical com- ments were: "The fact that her clothing was odd would be enough rea- son to eliminate her." "Most of the groups at school would feel that because of the way she is dressed, Jean would not be a desirable addition to their circle." "Certain groups would not accept a girl who was not stylishly groomed. Clothes are the be-all and end-all with them." "Some of them would find her outfit totally unacceptable and therefore they would never permit her to join their group." "Some groups would eliminate her purely on the way she dressed. They would not attempt to find out anything about her personality. . "Many would not even consider her a possible friend be- cause of the way she dresses. "Many people in the groups won't run around with anyone they feel is improperly dressed, who might reflect any- thing bad upon them." The other seven said that Jean would not be accepted because "some of them are snobs," or "don't want other kids inter- fering." Of the 31 girls answering "depends," 23 saw her having difficulty being accepted and 17 related this to clothing. Five of the girls, answering "depends on person- ality" implied by their comments that they probably wouldn't accept her, since they stated that only "lower" groups would accept her: "No, because it seems obvious that some don't hold clothes [sic] standards as high as I do. Some must act nnn+ if- " 144 "I think the 'kids' from would accept her in spite of her poor taste. They are not concerned with clothes." "Kids that need attention all the time would take her in." "In all probability, this girl would not receive a second glance from any group other than the low ones." "Some of the underdressed would accept her readily, since they dress the same way." The percentages of RFS members, isolates, and MP members rejecting Jean differed only slightly. RFS% MP% 15% Acceptance 59.3 ‘61.1 66.7 Depends 20.4 22.2 19.0 Rejection 20.4 16.7 14.3 Total 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% Summary Ninety-four per cent of the respondents felt Jean was not well-dressed. Two respondents, both mentioned "not dres- sed right" by their peers, thought Jean was well-dressed. Twenty per cent of the total respondents made critical im- pressions of Jean. Sixty-one per cent of the respondents accepted Jean, 19% rejected Jean, and 20% answered "depends." Eighty-four per cent either mentioned that Jean would have difficulty in being accepted1 or did not accept her, while v Q ' ‘ 1This was not asked as a direct question, so the percentage possibly could have been higher. 145 76% related the difficulty in being accepted or their re- jection to her clothing. D2 Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Michelle The respondents were presented the situational story of Michelle: Michelle recently moved to East Lansing from Califor- nia. Her first day at East Lansing High School she noticed that she was the only girl wearing colored bobby socks which were popular in California. She came home and told her mother that she had to buy heavy white socks so that she would be like all the other girls. Her mother thought this was rather foolish since all her colored socks matched her outfits. Seventy-six of the respondents or 49.7% thought that it was important that Michelle get white socks, while 16 respondents or 10.5% said that it depended and 61 res- pondents or 39.8% said that it was unimportant. A greater percentage of isolates and mutual pair (MP) members saw socks as unimportant than did RFS members. Twenty—four and Six—tenths per cent and 14.6% more isolates and MP members, respectively, thought socks were unimportant than RFS members, while 46.5% and 40.0% more RFS members than isolates and MP members, respectively, thought socks were important. 1Of 75 reSpondents answering "yes," 68 were RFS members, four were MP members, and three were isolates. Of 16 girls saying "depends," five were RFS members, five were. MP members and six were isolates. Of the 62 answering "no," 40 were RFS members, nine MP members and 13 isolates. 146 RFS% MP% 15% Yes 60.2 22.2 13.7 Depends 4.4 27.8 27.3 No 35.4 50.0 60.0 Total 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% Of the 61 respondents answering "no,' 15 mentioned that Michelle's socks wouldn't affect her making friends or her popularity, nine saw them creating some difficulty in forming friendships or gaining popularity, and three saw them causing her a "lot" of difficulty.1 The following are representative comments concer- ning popularity and friendship: No or Little Difficulty 1'I don't think socks have anything to do with making friends." "I think she would be accepted despite her colored socks." "Kids will accept her for her personality and not if she wears colored bobby socks." "I don't think her chances of becoming popular would be at all affected by whether or not she wears white bobby socks." "I don't think people will like or dislike her because of the color of socks." Some Difficulty TrIt might take people longer to get to know her." "Some people would think she was not the right type for group." A Lot of Difficulgy WMany would look down on her." Of the 16 respondents answering "depends,' two men- tioned little or no difficulty in making friends, while five l . . . The other 34 respondents didn't mention anything ahnnt Mi nhp'llp's: making Friends- 147 saw some difficulty and one saw a "lot" of difficulty. No or Little Difficulty “No difference to crowd just because you don't dress like the others. Some Difficulty "Some (popular group in particular) people might not like her because of it." "Some of the kids might not talk to her or be as friendly." A Lot of Difficulty "It could make a lot of difference if she wanted to be real popular. Of the 76 respondents answering that getting new socks was important, 11 saw the socks making no or little difference in friendship or popularity, while 27 saw them creating some difficulty and 18 saw them causing a great deal of difficulty.2 Little or No Difficulty “I don't feel that her socks would prevent her from being accepted by the other groups." "I do think she could be accepted by the other girls despite her socks." "She would be noticed because of her different socks, but it should not affect her popularity." Some Difficulty "It will make a difference in terms of which group would extend an invitation to join them." "I don't think she'd be as well-liked." "She may not be included like she'd want to be." "It wouldn't bother some, but would tend to influence how popular she'd be." A ?Lot of Difficu1_y 'I think that she would eXperience much difficulty making friends." "Lots of people will avoid someone who won't follow the trends of the school." "She'd have a hard time making friends," "I don't think she'd be accepted by most of the kids." 1The other eight did not mention anything about making friends. 2The other 19 respondents did not mention anything about Michelle making friends. 148 "The kids would probably stay away--not making a special effort to be friendly and then not really getting to know her." . "She could end up having a limited social life as a result." "She would definitely be snubbed by many people here." Of the total respondents, 18.3% said that Michelle, because of her socks, would have no or little difficulty making friends, while 41.2% said she would have some or great difficulty in making friends. The other 40.5% made no com- ments concerning Michelle's making friends. Proportionately, more RFS members made more comments concerning Michelle mak- ing friends than did either isolates or MP members. The question of Michelle's getting "white~socks like 2 the other girls" elicited 76 references to conformity. Forty-two respondents, 27.5%, mentioned the importance of conformity or "being like others" or "not being different." Typical comments were as follows: "Around.here, it seems to be very important to conform to the pattern of heavy white socks and tennis shoes." "She would be the butt of jokes concerning her lack of conformity." "Important to be like others and not feel left out as different." "I think that it is very important for teen-agers to conform to patterns that exist within their social sit- uations." 1Forty-five and one-tenth per cent of the RFS members saw Michelle as having some or great difficulty making friends, while 27.5% and 31.8% of the MP members and isolates, respectively, saw Michelle as having some or great difficulty. Twenty—one and two-tenths per cent of the RFS members, 5.6% MP members and 13.6% isolates saw Michelle as having no or little difficulty making friends. 2Seventy-one respondents made conformity comments. Five of these mentioned the "possibility of a fad" and another comment. 149 "If everyone else wears white.socks, it would seem necessary that a new girl adapt the same pattern." "There is no point in being different." "In our school, everyone conforms. If she doesn't one is left out. My mom said she wouldn't want to be dres- sed like everyone else--better to be different. Right now, I think it is better to be alike." "You just need to go along or you won't get anyplace." "To be accepted, you have to follow the trend of the school that you're in." "She should try to blend in with everyone else." "Conformity is important when you move into a new school. . . . I feel conformity makes one feel more secure." "Teenagers just won't accept someone if she's different." "Having some of the characteristics of the other girls can make a big difference." "I do think she should get a few pairs of white socks so that we could be convinced of her acceptance of our fads." "If you are different, they won't make friends with you. They want you to be like them--everybody else." "One is expected to confOrm." A greater percentage of RFS members (33.6%) mentioned that conformity was important than did either MP members (11.1%) or isolates (9.1%).1 Nine of the 42 girls answering that conformity was important were from RFS 107A; thus 69.2% of RFS 107A mentioned the importance of conformity. Twenty girls stated that Michelle shouldn't be "overly concerned with conformity because she might be star- ting a 'new fad." However, one girl made the point that she "would have to have a radiant personality to be followed" and another stated that she'd have to be a "senior, probably." 1Fourteen of these respondents viewed conformity im- portant in terms of Michelle's feelings with comments such as "She'd feel better to be like the others," and "She wouldn't feel accepted if not conforming." 2Other groups with high percentages of members men- tioning the importance of conformity were: RFS 105, 2 mem- bers or 50%, RFS 103, 3 members or 50%; RFS 109, 4 members or 50%; RFS 113, 3 members or 50%; RFS 115, 2 members or 67.7%. 150 Three girls mentioned that her nonconformity wouldn't be held against her. "Kids here seem to consider others' taste." "We each have our likes and dislikes and we aren't out- casts." "It won't make any difference just because she's the only one wearing them." (Three others viewed Michelle's conformity advantageously: "She would be noticed for it and thus noticed quicker than the other kids." "It would be nice to be different from the other girls. I think it would be important for her to keep that in mind when thinking about it. " "Other girls pick up ideas--talk to her and ask where she got them and might be quite popular girl and every- one starts talking to her." These girls viewed nonconformity advantageously in terms of being noticed or gaining attention, thus implying friendship or popularity. - Seven girls (four isolates, two MP members and one RFS member) stated that they believed conformity was unimpor- tant and that Michelle shouldn't change in order to be like others1 while one re5pondent (MP member) thought conformity was stifling. Conformity as Unimportant “She shofildnTt Ehange to suit others." "There is no reason she should go along with everyone else." "It's not necessary to have socks like the others."2' "It wouldn't be my place or anyone else's to try and change her." 1Although other girls said that it wasn't important for Michelle to get white socks, these were the only girls that emphasized that she shouldn't change just to conform. 2This girl was mentioned more times than any other as "not dressed right"--l8 times. 151 "I don't think it's necessary to go alOng with group . . . I don't like conformism-" "She shouldn't buy new socks just because everyone else is wearing them." "It seems frivolous to replace perfectly good socks mer- ely because they are not Ehe same as the girls at this high school are wearing." Conformity as Stifligg “Ifyou follow a lead, you aren't being yourself--not an individual." A greater percentage of isolates (18.2%) and MP mem- bers (16.7%) show conformity as unimportant and changing to conform as unnecessary or stifling than did RFS members (0.9%). Fifty-one respondents or 33% saw Michelle's feelings or personality possibly being affected negatively directly or indirectly2 by her "difference" or "colored socks." They viewed Michelle as being "embarrassed," "ill-at-ease," "self-conscious," or feeling "funny," or "foolish," or "developing a complex." Some descriptive comments were: "It might make her feel shy and left out or on the de- fensive and sort of grumpy and unkind." "She could develop an inferiority complex as the result of feeling different." "She wouldn't feel accepted if not conforming--can defi- nitely deform a person mentally if always feel unaccep- table." Only one girl, an isolate, stated that Michelle's 1 colored socks would not affect Michelle: "It wouldn't affect her personality, like the way she talks and acts." A higher percentage of mutual pair members (50%) saw 1This girl Was mentioned once as not dressed right. 2A few of these stated Michelle's feelings in terms of "feeling better" or "more-at-ease" if she got white socks. , a ‘ 152 Michelle's feelings or personality being affected by her "difference" than did RFS members (32.7%) or isolates (18.2%). Of the 51 respondents, four were from RFS 110 (67.7% of the group) and seven were from RFS 107A (53.8%).1 Summary Approximately 50% of the reSpondents thought that it was important that Michelle get white socks, while 40% felt that it was unimportant. A greater percentage of RFS members saw Michelle's getting whie socks as important than did either MP members or isolates. Forty-one per cent of total respondents mentioned that Michelle would have some or great difficulty in making friends or becoming pOpular, while 18% saw her having no or little difficulty. Twenty-seven and five-tenths per cent of the respon- dents referred to the importance of conformity. Twenty res- ponses indicated that Michelle's "difference" could possibly be instrumental in starting a fad. Six respondents saw non- conformity either as not "hurting" Michelle or as advantageous, while eight respondents or 5% saw conformity as either unim- portant or stifling. A greater percentage of RFS members (34%) mentioned the importance of conformity than did either MP members (11%) or isolates (9%). 1Other groups having high percentages of respondents were RFS 113 with three members (42.9%) and RFS 103 with three members (50%). Triads 117 and 116 had two members each as respondents. ~ '53 153 Thirty-three per cent of total respondents referred to Michelle's personality as being affected negatively by her "difference." D3 Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Lynn Lynn dresses very neatly for school. She has many expen- sive clothes; however, her hair is usually a mess and un- kempt. Do you think messy hair plays an important part in Lynn's appearance? One hundred forty-five girls or 95.4% answered "yes"-' to the above question, while two answered "depends" (two is- olates), and five1 answered "no"2 (two isolates, two MP's, and one RFS member). A higher percentage of isolates and MP members answered "depends" or "no" than RFS members. Respondents were asked the question, "What do you think is more important--expensive clothes or neat hair?" One hundred twenty-two answered "neat hair," while 11 an- swered "expensive clothes." Fourteen respondents said "both," three said "neither" and one said "neat clothes, but not ex- Pensive clothes." Four of the 14 respondents answering "both" were either mentioned as best dressed or popular or both at least four times. Of the 11 respondents answering "expensive clothes," one was from the upper class, six from the lower-upper class, three from the upper-middle class and one from the middle 1Ironically, of the five girls, one was named "not dressed right" ten times and one was named "best dressed" ten times. . . 2Only 152 respondents gave answers since one girl Was unable to finish her interview. —‘——___1 154 class, thus 82% of those answering "expensive clothes" were from the lower-upper or upper-middle class with ISC scores ranging from 30-45. Of the 11 respondents answering "expensive clothes," six1 were either mentioned best dressed or popular or both at least once. RFS groups 107A, 1073, 104 and 1032 had the highest percentages of members who answered "expensive clothes or both." Twenty-nine or 18.4% made negative impressions of Lynn or saw others making negative impressions of her. No 3 respondents made positive impressions. Nine girls formed impressions of her being "sloppy," "messy," or "unclean" or 0 having "poor grooming," and five of these girls carried her sloppiness over into the rest of her personality. "People might generalize and consider her a messy per- son." "If her hair is unclean, she'll probably be the same." "Unkempt hair might mean she was sort of sloppy." "If she doesn't care about her hair she's probably sloppy otherwise." "If your hair is messy, it will show you are not a neat person." 1One was named best dressed ten times, one was men- tioned as popular one time, one was mentioned as popular four times, another was mentioned as popular three times and best dressed four times, and two were mentioned as best dressed once each. 2Four members or 30.8% of 107A either mentioned "ex- pensive clothes" or "both" as important, while three members of 107B or 21.4% mentioned "both" or "expensive clothes" and two members of 104 or 25% and two members of 103 or 67.7% also mentioned "both" or "expensive clothes." 3Four of the nine rejected Lynn, two accepted her and three said "depends as a girl friend." i 155 Eleven1 respondents saw Lynn's unkempt hair as in- dicative of her "not caring how she looks, or of a disin- terest in herself. Typical comments were: "If she doesn't take care of her hair, it shows she doesn't care." "Messy hair--think she doesn't care how she looks." "Clothes mean money. Nice hair means interest in your- self." Of the other nine respondents two2 saw her unkempt hair as indicative of personality and made comments that: "Personality might be poor if her hair is sloppy." "Usually aren't nice if can't keep hair up." 3 Four attributed negative characteristics to Lynn: "It would show irresponsibility." "Keeping one's hair messy reflects an indifferent at- titude on her part." "She's lazy or something." "If hair not neat, you're careless and your mind is such." Three4 gave merely negative general impressions. "Something's lacking if you don't try to keep your hair neat." "If hair is messy, it causes bad impressions." "Would reflect certain undesirable characteristics." Of the 29 respondents making negative impressions five were 1Three reSpondents accepted her, four rejected her, three said "depends," and one said "don't know." 2One rejected and one said "if she's nice." 3Two accepted her as a girl friend and to run with the group and two rejected her. 4One rejected her as a girl friend and to run with her group and one accepted her. 156 MP members,l four were isolates and 20 were RFS members;2 thus a slightly greater percentage of MP members (27.8%) made negative impressions of Lynn than did either RFS members (17.9%) or isolates (18.2%) questioned.3 However, RFS members made a greater proportion of "personality" impressions and lesser proportion of "sloppy" and "don't care" comments than isolates or MP members.4 A slightly greater percentage of upper socio-economic class (20.9%) and lower socio-economic class students (25.0%) made negative impressions of Lynn than did middle socio- economic students (13.4%). However, there was little differ- ence between the sociOZeconomic groups in the proportion of type of comment made.5 1Of the 20 RFS members making negative impressions, three of them were from RFS 107A (23.1% of group), three of them from RFS 1078 (21.4% of group) while RFS 110, 102C, 108, 105 and triad 1023 yielded two respondents each or 33.3%, 50%, 50%, and 67.7% of their groups respectively. The other four respondents were from RFS groups 112, 103, 106 and 113. RFS groups 102A, 111, 104, and 109 and triads 117, 101, 116 and 114 yielded no "negative impression" responses. 2Two of the MP members_making negative reSponses for- med Mutual Pair A. -" 3 One RFS member was not questioned on Lynn since she had to leave the interview to take a test. 4One hundred per cent of isolates comments were "sloppy," 75%, or "don't care" (25%); 80% of MP members com- ments were "sloppy" (40%) or "don't care" (40%); while 20% were personality impressions. Sixty per cent of RFS members' comments were "sloppy" (20%) or "don't care" (41%), while 40% were "personality impressions." 5Seventy-five per cent of commenting lower socio- economic members made "sloppy" or "don't care" impressions, 25% of commenting lower socio-economic members made "person- ality impressions"; 68.5% of commenting upper socio-economicl 157 When asked if they would like Lynn as a girl friend, 37 respondents or 24.3% rejected her. Nine of the rejectors said that they would accept her if she changed her hair and one if she had an "exceptional personality." Thirty-one of the rejectors were RFS members, six were MP members, and one was an isolate. Thus, 35.8% of RFS members, 33.3% of MP members, and 4.5% of the isolates were rejectors. Forty-four or 28.9% said that it "depended" upon her "personality" or "type of person she was" or "how she ac- ted." Forty-six or 30.3% accepted Lynn unconditionally, while 23 or 15.1% accepted her conditionally, that is "yes, if she was nice," or "yes, if I liked her personality." A larger percentage of isolates (68.2%) and MP members (55.6%) accepted Lynn than did RFS members (39.3%). It is significant that proportionally isolates made the greatest number of acceptances and the least number of rejections. members made "leppy" or "don't care" impressions; 31.5% of commenting upper~socio-economic members made "personality impressions";,67.7% of commenting middle socio-economic mem- bers made "sleppy" or "don't care" impressions; while 33.3% of commenting middle socio-economic members made "personality impressions." 158 i RFS% MP% 13% Acceptance 39.3 55.6 68.2V Depends 32.1 11.1 27.3 Rejection 36.8 33.3 04.5 Total 98.2%1 100.0% 100.0% When asked if they would invite Lynn into their group, 87 (26 of these conditionally) or 57.2% said "yes," 27 or 17.8% answered "depends," while 36 or 23.7% rejected her.2 Seven respondents accepted Lynn as a girl friend, but would not invite her into the group. (Four of these girls were from the larger RFS 107, one was from RFS 103, one was a MP and one was an isolate.) Seven respondents rejected Lynn as a girl friend but said they would invite her into the group (two were RFS 109 members, two were MP members, and there was one each from RFS 107A, 105 and 103). Five res- pondents answered "depends" to Lynn as a girl friend, but re- jected her on the group question (one each from RFS 102A, 107B, 117, 103, and 113). Fifty-eight respondents or 31.6% accepted Lynn both as a girl friend and into their group. Thirty-seven were RFS lTwo stated that they'didn't know." 2One respondent (RFS member) answered "don't know" and two respondents (an isolate and RFS member) were not asked the question. 159 members,1 14 were isolates and seven were MP members; thus a greater percentage of isolates (63.3%) were double acceptors (accepting both as girl friend and into the group) than either MP members (38.9%) or RFS members (33.0%). Twenty-seven respondents or 17.8% rejected Lynn both as a girl friend and as.a group member. Twenty-three were RFS members, three were MP members and one was an isolate, thus a higher percentage of RFS members2 (20.5%) and MP mem— bers (16.7%) were double rejectors than Were isolates (4.5%). The other 47 respondents were coded either as "yes- depends," "depends-yes," "rejects-depends," or "depends- depends." Of the 58 respondents who were double acceptors, 33 saw their group in full accord, while 23 did not.3 Of the 27 rejectors, 21 saw their group in full accord, while five saw some disagreeing with the rejection. lSix were members of 107A (46.2%); five were of 1073 (35.7%), four were of 102C (67.7%), three were from 108 (75%), and two each from 112 (40%), 104 (28.6%), 103 (33.3%), 117 (67.7%), and 102A (33.3%), while there was one each from 101, 1028, 103, 106, 109, 110, and 111. 2Three were 107A members (23.1%) and three were 107B members (21.4%), while groups 102A (33.3%), 113 (28.6%), and 110 (33.3%) yielded two double rejectors each, while groups 101, 1023, 102C, 104, 106, 108, 109, 111, 112, 114 and 115 yielded one each. 3Two respondents answered "don't know." 4One answered "depends." 160 Summagy Ninety-five per cent of the respondents thought that "messy hair" played an important part in Lynn's appearance. Approximately 80% thought that "neat hair" was more important than "expensive clothes," while 7% thought expensive clothes were more important and 9% thought both were equally impor- tant.1 Eighty-two per cent of the respondents answering "expensive clothes" were from either the lower-upper or upper-middle socio-economic class and 55% were mentioned as either "best dressed" or "moSt popular." Twenty-nine respondents or 18% made negative impres- sions of Lynn or saw others making negative impressions. Nine respondents made “sloppy" impressions, 11 made "don't care about appearance" impressions and nine made "personality im-- pressions." RFS members made a greater proportion of "per- sonality impressions" than did MP members or isolates. When asked if they would like Lynn as a girl friend, approximately 45% said "yes," 30% said "depends" and 24% said no. When asked if they would invite her into their group, approximately 57% said "yes," 18% said depends and 24% said "no." A larger percentage of isolates and MP members accepted Lynn than did RFS members. Proportionately, isolates made more acceptances and less rejections than either MP members or RFS members. 1Three re3pondents thought neither Were important and one mentioned the importance of "neat, but not expensive clothes." 161 D4 Comments Concerning the "Judgment by Appearance Syndrome" During the course of questioning 23 respondents men- tioned the "popular group." All but four1 said that the pop- ular group would reject individuals on the basis of appear- ance. Typical comments were: "The very popular groups feel themselves too superior to most people and in this case, they would reflect con-- tempt for her because of her poor taste." "The very popular groups are too snobbish to accept any- one who does not make the best kind of appearance." "Real popular ones don't want a girl in their group who is not well-dressed." "The most popular girls more or less have the cutest ones and the best-dressed ones. They are more or less their own clique and don't want those that are not up in standards as far as they are." "A few of the very popular groups would judge her solely on the basis of her appearance." "More popular groups of people are more particular about looks than personality." "For popular kids, you have to be neat, and cute and everything like that." "The very pOpular group would never consider accepting anyone who was not meticulously groomed. Other groups have less rigid standards and might be willing to ac- cept this girl." Five other girls (four RFS members and one MP member) men- tioned the "top group." "If it was the 'tOp layer of the cake group,‘ no, be- cause they.are mainly judged on leoks and clothing." "The upper 10% goes on clothes andappearance." "No, probably not the real top. They probably wouldn't think she was good enough for them." 1One of the four commented that "popular girls have both expensive clothes and neat hair." Another said that "the popular girls start fads in East Lansing." Another said that popular girls might accept Lynn because of her expensive clothes and "try to get her to do something about her hair." The last said "Some new girls have come in and haven't gotten to know popular girls and they haven't made any effort to get to know he new girl." 162 "The top group would certainly reject her [Lynn] unless she tried to improve her hair. The other groups would probably be more willing to judge her also for her per- sonality." "The top clique is very rigid with respect to their en- trance requirements. It is almost impossible to be in— vited in unless you conform to their wishes." Other girls mentioned particular groups. Three tal- ked about well-dressed girls. "Some of the really well-dressed girls would never con- sider admitting anyone who would dress in such a way." "Some groups (groups that think only about clothes, us- ually have clothes but not best-liked) judge entirely on the way you dress; don't think about personality, but make snap judgment on the way you dress at the minute." "Certain groups consist of only well-dressed people. They would not extend friendship to a person who is not well-dressed." Others mentioned the "snobby" group; groups that "think they're better, don't get good grades, and think about boys"; groups that "think they're quite hot"; "groups of real rich kids"; "some of the more aloof groups“ and "tough1 group" as not accepting someone because of their appearance. Forty-five respondents mentioned "some" groups or "certain groups" as rejecting on the basis of appearance or placing much importance on appearance, and 16 respondents saw certain individuals as rejecting an appearance, rather than groups. The following are typical comments: "Many of them [groups] are not broad-minded enough to accept a person for what she is. Rather she is judged by the outfits she wears." "Some of the groups judge a person entirely on their looks." "In some groups, clothes are everything or a major part l"Tough," at the time of the study, was adolescent slang for "cool" or nice. ” 163 of what they consider important." "Some groups judge on dress," "Some groups emphasize clothes a disproportionate amount." "Some groups put looks aheadlof personality. If they don't like one's looks, they won't do anything else about it." Approximately 50% of all respondents mentioned that some or certain groups (including popular, top, best-dressed) judged or rejected on the basis of appearance, while ten per cent of all respondents saw some individuals or "some pe0ple" as appearance-judging. APPENDIX E APPENDIX E. FINDINGS OF THE TWELFTH GRADE The following is a more complete and detailed ac- count of the responses of twelfth graders given about the situational stories, as discussed in Chapter Four. E1 Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Jean The twelfth grade respondents were given the same story about Jean three years later. Of the 1371 respondents, 126 or 92% said that Jean was not well-dressed. Twenty respondents formed negative impressions of Jean of which nine concerned her "taste" or'bense of contrast" with com- ments such as "doesn't know the basic principles of good dress," or "her taste isn't up to par." Eight comments con- cerned her "common sense," "sensibleness, or "discretion." The other three respondents making negative impressionssaid, "She'd be a little bit wild," that she wasn't "conforming enough to society," and "she'd look ridiculous and she'd probably act in accordance." 1There were 138 girls in the twelfth grade, but one (RFS) refused to be interviewed. Girls who were interviewed in the ninth grade kept their same code numbers and are iden- tified by their number either starting with 0 or 1. Girls with numbers starting with 2, 3, and 4 entered East Lansing High School as a sophomore, junior, and senior, respec— tively. 164 4..____—_—-_ __ — 165 Six respondents' answers were coded "depends."I TWe of these stated that her combinations might be "okay" if she could carry them off or had the personality for them: "I'm afraid not, but if she was able to carry it off” with aplomb, I couldn't say she was dressed 'wrong.'" "I think you have to dress to suit your personality. If you have a plaid and flowered personality, it would be O.K." One of the respondents who didn't think Jean was well-- dressed made a positive impression of Jean: "Sounds like she has an interesting personality." Fivel girls said they thought she was well-dressed and gave explanations as to why. Yes, because she's neat and clean." "Yes, because I think as long as it's appropriate for the occasion, it does not matter if her style doesn't . appeal to someone else." "Yes, maybe from where she came everyone liked it. I think it'd be fun to have the nerve to do it." "Yes, if she's neat and clean, I'd consider her well- dressed. Her choice of plaid and flowered is a matter of taste and no one can say this is right or wrong.". "Yes, if this is the way she likes to dress and they are neat and clean." Three girls commented upon Jean's combinations in relationship to fashion--speculating upon the possibility of their becoming fashionable. "No, plaids and flowers don't go together, but this is kinda coming in--in Mademoiselle." "Sometimes new styles might dictate that kind of combi- nation." "See such in magazines, but don't think pe0ple mean them." When asked if they would like to have Jean as a girl 1Three of the five who were interviewed in the ninth grade had said that Jean was not well-dressed. 166 friend, 53 or 38.6% answered yes. Twenty-six said yes, conditionally, commenting "if nice" or'"if has nice person* ality"; 41 or 29.9% said depends, 25 or 18.2% said no (with three saying they'd accept her if she changed) and 18 or 13.1% said "don't know" or "can't tell." Of the 53 acceptors, nine were isolates, five were MP members and 39 were RFS members; thus 45.0% of all=isola—v tes, 31.3% of the MP members, and 38.6% of the RFS members~ were acceptors. A slightly higher percentage of isolates accepted than did RFS or MP members. Of the 25 rejecting Jean, 19 were RFS members, five were isolates and one was a MP member, thus 18.8% of RFS members, 25% of isolates and 6.2% of MP members rejected. RFS% MP% 18% Acceptance 38.6 31.3 45.0 B:§?2d§n3£ 42.6 62.5 30.0 Rejection $18.8 6.2 25.0 Total .100.0%. 100.0% 100.0% In response to the question, "Would you invite Jean into your group?" 69 or 50.4% said "yes"l (34 of these condi- tionally), 29 or 21.2% said "depends" while 29 or 21.2% said 1It is interesting to note that five respondents said that they would accept Jean asra~girl friend but not into the group, while five said that they would accept her into the group but not as a girl friend. 167 "no" and 10 or 7.3% said "don't know."‘ There were 43 double acceptors (accepting Jean both asva girl friend and . . . l ._ in their group). Twenty-nine of the acceptors were RFS mem- bers, nine were isolates, and five were MP members, thus 28.7% of RFS members, 45% of isolates and 31.3% of MP mem- bers were double acceptors. There were 20 or 14.6% double rejectors. Sixteen2 of the rejectors were RFS members, three were isolates, and one was an MP member, thus 15.8% of RFS‘members, 15.0% of isolates and 6.3% of MP members were double rejectors. Of the 43 double acceptors, 24 saw their groups in complete accord, while 15 saw not everyone in their group agreeing with their acceptance3 and made comments such as the following: "I think a couple are a little critical of appearance." "Some think clothes make the person." "They'd be more concerned with clothes." "Some are too fashion conscious." Of the 20 double rejectors, 16 saw their groups in 4 full accord while three did not. Eleven of the 16 rejecting and seeing their group rejecting did see Jean being accepted lSeven were from RFS 402A (45%), four were from 417C (44%), three each were from 411 (60%), 422 (60%), and 402C (33.3%). Two each from 417B (40%), 417A (20%) and 407A (18.2%) and one each from 427 (25%), and 414 (33.3%). 2 Groups 427, 417C, 407A, 402C, and 401 each had two rejectors while groups 402A, 421, 4173, 407B, 402B, and 411 each had one rejector. 3Three of 43 answered "depends" or "don't know." 4One answered "don't know." 168 by some group or some one. When asked "Would all groups do the same as your group?" typical responses were: "No, some people don't care about clothes so it would- n't matter to them." "Just about all, except groups who have same standards of dress and they would include her." "No, she'd probably go around with kids of her own class." Of the 137 respondents, 123 either saw her having some degree of difficulty in being accepted or did not ac- l cept her. Ninety—five of these related the difficulty of acceptance directly to her appearance. The following were comments made about her difficulty in making friends: "There are some groups in school that just wouldn't accept anyone who wore plaid skirts and flowered blouses." "Some people would feel that if she wore that combina- tion, they wouldn't want to be seen with her." "Most of the kids would take one look at her and might not even try to find out the personality she might have." "She'll be teased and it will be hard for her to get along with others." "There are about 20 kids out of all the kids in the school that might ask her to do something with them." Summagy Ninety-two per cent of the respondents felt that Jean was not well-dressed. Five reSpondents thought that she was well-dressed. Fifteen per cent of the total respondents made cri- tical impressions of Jean. 1The other 28 saw her having difficulty by virtue of being a new girl. 169 Thirty-nine per cent of the respondents accepted Jean, 18% rejected Jean, and 43% answered "depends" or "don't know" when asked if they would like Jean as a girl friend. Fifty per cent said "yes," 21 per cent said "no" and 29 per cent said "depends" or "don't know" when asked if they would invite Jean into their group. Thirty-one per cent of the total respondents accep- ted Jean both as a girl friend and into their groups. Fif- teen per cent of the total respondents were double rejectors. A slightly higher proportion of isolates were double accep- tors than RFS or MP members. Ninety per cent either mentioned that Jean would have difficulty in being accepted or did not accept her, while 69% of the total respondents related the difficulty directly to her appearance. E2 Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Michelle Twelfth grade respondents were presented with the "revised" situational story of Michelle: Michelle recently moved to East Lansing from Califor- nia. Her first day at school she noticed that she was the only girl wearing colored bobby socks which were popular in California. She came home and told her mother that she had to buy hose so that she would be like all the other girls. Her mother thought this was rather foolish. Do you think it is important for Michelle to have hose like the rest of the girls? One hundred eight or 78.9% thought that it was im- portant that Michelle get nylons like the rest of the girls, while nine respondents or 6.6% answered "depends" and 20 or 170 14.6% thought that socks were unimportant. A slightly greater proportion of RFS members (82.2%) viewed Michelle's "difference" as important while a slightly greater propor- tion of isolates (25.0%) viewed it as unimportant. RFS% MP% 15% Yes 82.2 68.8 70.0 Is it impor- tant that ' Michelle get Depends 4.9 18.7 5.0 hose like the 1 other girls? _ No 12.9 12.5 25.0 Of the 20 respondents answering no, two explained that it wasn't important that she get hose, but get knee socks. Both of these girls rejected her as a girl friend and into their group. Of the other 18,1 eight saw Michelle's colored bobby socks as inconsequential in making friends and commented: "I don't think they'd judge on her socks." "Basic idea that people will accept her if she's nice, not by what she wears." "Friendships are based on more than stockings." 2 The other ten saw Michelle's socks affecting her acceptance. "Some would laugh and make fun of her." "Might think she's not good enough." "Some of kids will regard her as a non-conformist and look down on her . . . Some kids seem to think, natur- ally, that she's weird for being without hose." . 3 . . Of the nine answering "depends," two saw Michelle's socks of 1 None of the 18 rejected Michelle. 2Some merely said that she would not be accepted by some groups because of her socks. 75!an AF +hn ning rnfi'on‘I-ofl M1' nhn'l'lo 171 no consequence in acceptance. "Most kids would take her on the basis of personality and neatness" and "Most of them are pretty intelligent and they don't make snap judgments about a person because of the clothes she wears." The other seven saw Michelle having some degree of difficulty in making friends. "She would probably be cast out by the popular kids." "There would be some kids who would judge her on the basis of her colored socks." "Some people will not accept somebody who's different and they'll laugh at them because they're different." Of the 108 who agreed that it was important that Michelle get hose like the other girls, 82 either saw her having difficulty being accepted by others or rejected her friendship. The other 25 did not Michelle's socks affec- ting her acceptance. "Most of the kids in this school give a person a fair chance even if they do have a flaw in their appearance." The following are some comments representative of the 82 seeing Michelle as having difficulty making friends: "She'd probably eventually find friends but it would be easier otherwise." "It might take her a little longer to get in." "She'll probably have difficulty making friends." "There's the classes and the cliques and they aren't going to accept some little queer with green socks." "She'll be shunned by some people." "She might have some trouble getting to know kids." "Some groups wouldn't include her in things, certain people . . . would make snide, cutting remarks." "Won't make friends with group she'd like to." "She might not make as many friends or may not date." "She'll have fewer friends than if she wore hose." "She'll be unable to make contact with a lot of the girls, because they wouldn't want to run around with her when she wore the socks." "Difference will be group she's going to hang around with." 172 "The kids will ostracize her. It's something so wild, I don't think they'll accept it." "People tend to grade by appearance for first few days . . . tend to make it a little bit more difficult for her to make friends." "She'd probably be like Jean, an outcast." "The boys would tease her an awful lot about it. If she did take them off, she might attract the boys more." "Some people might inadvertently avoid her because of it." "I think many people would label her as being out of it." "Some kids would think her completely odd and not try to get to know her." "If she wanted to get to know girls fast, she'd need hose." Two respondents made the interesting comments that if she was cute, her socks wouldn't matter: "If she was cute, her socks would be accepted. If she wasn't, it would just be another thing weighted against her." i . "If she was stylish with everything else, it wouldn't make any difference--especially if she was cute and met the qualifications for being popular." 1 . Thus, 102 or 75.5% of the total respondents saw Michelle as encountering difficulty in being accepted or making friends. The question of Michelle's getting hose like the other girls elicited responses about conformity from 412 respondents. Eighteen regarded or saw others regarding con- formity as important. "A new girl needs to conform." "Teenagers are c0nformists and they ridicule others if they don't conform." "The best thing in‘a new school is to do in Rome as the Romans do." "Conformity is important around here." "For first general acceptance, she should be like others." 171.3% of RFS members saw Michelle encountering dif- ficulty, 85% of isolates and 81.2% of MP members. Forty—one respondents made 43 conformity responses. 173 Three respondents took a more modified stance on conformity and commented: "You don't need to conform completely, but you should generally." ~ "It seems like she wants to be like everyone else and that's O.K." "You've got to hit a happy medium between individual and conformist." There were eleven2 responses stating that Michelle's nonconformity could start a new trend or fad. Seven respon- dents said directly or indirectly that conformity was unim- portant. "I don't think it's important to change." "She shouldn't feel she must dress like the majority." Four other respondents made stronger statements about confor- mity and nonconformity: "I respect someone who doesn't conform." "Sometimes think it is neat to be different . . . Some are lousy conformists." "If she has to be a conformist, she must have a shallow personality." "It would show one good thing about her personality be- cause she is an individual and has a strong personality to be able to continue and not care what others think." Thus, 11 individuals viewed conformity as unimportant or nonconformity as advantageous. Six of the 11 were RFS 1Of the 27 respondents making strong or moderate com- ments about conformity importance, 17 were RFS members (17%), three were isolates (15%), and one was a MP member (6%). Three of the 17 RFS members were from 417C and three were from 402C, two were from each of RFS groups 402A, 109 and 417A. RFS groups 4023, 407B, 412, 414, 4173 each had one respondent. 2Another respondent viewing conformity as important. and stating "It will be ten times to her advantage to change," mentioned that "She may start the fad if she's a real leader." However, the respondent was coded as viewing conformity as important. 174 members1 (11%), three were isolates (15%), and two were MP members (12.5%). Sixty-seven2 respondents or 48.9% of all respondents mentioned Michelle's feelings. Forty-five mentioned that Michelle's colored socks would make her feel "uneasy," or "uncomfortable," or "ill-at-ease" or "self-conscious," or I 3 or would "lower her confidence." Comments ran- "insecure,' ged from "She might feel uncomfortable" to ". . . her confi- dence would be destroyed." Five girls saw her feeling "out of place", "out of it," or "odd." Two girls saw her feeling "unhappy," and one as feeling "sad," one as feeling "bad," and one as "lonely." Five girls generalized saying that her feelings would be affected or she would be bothered. Two said that "it might affect her emotionally" or be "distur- bing emotionally." Four others saw her feeling possibly "embarrassed," "the pressure of society," "that everyone's looking at her," or "discontented." Finally, one respondent said "She would feel funny . . . She'll be self-conscious and won't talk to anyone and will hate the school and peOple in it." 1Two of the RFS members were from 407A, two were from 417A, and one was from 402C and one from 417C. 2Forty-six of the respondents were RFS members (45.5%), 12 were MP members (75%), and nine were isolates (45%). Some of these respondents saw Michelle as gaining se- curity or confidence or feeling more comfortable or at ease upon receiving hose, thus inferring that with colored bobby socks she'd feel less secure, confident, etc. 175 When asked if they would like Michelle as a girl friend, 76 or 55.5% said yes (25 of these conditionally, "if nice"), 39 or 28.5% said depends and 11 or 8% rejected her, while 11 or 8% said "don't know." A slightly higher proportion of isolates accepted Michelle and a slightly lesser proportion rejected Michelle than did either MP members or RFS members. RFS% MP% Is% Accept 58.4 25.0 65.0 Would you like Michelle De end as a girl Dofi.t ing; 33.6 62.5 30.0 friend? Reject 7.8 12.5 5.0 When asked if they would invite Michelle into their group, 84 or 61.3% said "yes" (26 of these conditionally), 27 or 19.8% said "depends," while 15 or 11.0% rejected her and 11 or 8.0% said "don't know." There were 67 double acceptors (respondents accep- ting Michelle both as a girl friend and into their group.) Forty-nine saw their groups agreeing with acceptance while 15 saw their group disagreeing.l Fifty-one2 of the double lThree said "depends" or "don't know." 2Twelve of the double acceptors were from RFS 402A (75%), eight were from RFS 402C (88.9%), five were from 417C (55.6%), five were from 417A (50%), four were from 411 (80%) and three were from 409 (60%). RFS groups 407A (18.2%), 401 (50%), 421 (50%), 417B (40%), 414 (66.7%), and 412 (50%) had two double acceptors each, and 407B (20%) and 427 (14.3%) had one each. 176 acceptors were RFS members (50.5%), four were MP members (25%) and 12 were isolates (60%). There were eight double rejectors of which six saw their groups in full accord, while two did not. All of the double rejectors were RFS members1 except one who was a MP member. Thus no isolates were double rejectors. Summary Approximately 79% of the respondents thought that it was important that Michelle get hose, while 15% felt that it was unimportant. A slightly greater proportion of RFS members saw Michelle's getting hose as important, while a slightly greater prOportion of isolates saw it as unimportant. Seventy-four and five—tenths per cent of the total respondents either viewed Michelle as having some difficulty in making friends or rejected her because of her colored bobby socks or "difference." Thirty per cent of all the respondents made confor- mity responses. Twenty-one or 15.4% saw conformity as impor- tant, while 11 saw Michele's difference as perhaps instru- mental in starting a fad, while 11 or 8.3% saw conformity as, l417C had two rejectors (22.3%) and groups 407A, 427, 421, 417A, and 412 had one each. 2It could be said that the isolates, RFS 402A, 402C and 411 were the most accepting since all had high propor-w tions of double acceptors (45%, 75%, 88.9%, 80%, respectively), and no double rejectors. 177 either unimportant, or admirable. Forty-nine per cent of the total respondents refer- red to Michelle's feelings as being affected negatively by her difference. Fifty-six per cent of the respondents accepted Michelle as a girl friend while eight per cent rejected her; 61% said they would invite her into their group, while 11% said that they would not. Sixty-seven respondents or 49% were double acceptors, while eight or 6% were double rejectors. A slightly greater proportion of isolates were double acceptors and a lesser pro- portion were double rejectors than RFS or MP members. E3 Responses Concerning the Situational Story of Lynn To the twelfth-grade respondents, the following situational story was presented about Lynn: Lynn is a new girl in your grade. She dresses very neatly for school. She has many expensive clothes; however, her hair is usually messy and unkempt. What would you think of Lynn? Why? Which do you think is more important--expensive clothes or neat hair? Seventeen respondents said that they wouldn't think anything or won't form an opinion on the basis of the infor- mation given. "Have to get to know her before would know what I think of her." "I don't think I'd think anything of her." "Probably want to find out more about her before I came to any conclusions." "Wouldn't think anything of her until I talked to her." Five other respondents said that merely her messy hair wouldn't bother or matter to them. Three said that she 178 was probably "O.K.," while another four said, "sounds like a nice kid," "probably nice," or "probably a very nice girl." Four respondents said that she would have "a better chance than Jean or Michelle of making friends," while two others stated, "If she acted nice, I'd like her," and one said, "I wouldn't think that she'd be bad because messy hair doesn't make your character bad." Finally, one commented, "sounds like she could be in just about any group in this school. Any group would like to have the social standing of a girl with expensive clothes in their group." Fifty respondents formed 53 critical impressions of Lynn. Thirty-ninel were RFS members (38.6%), three were MP members (18.7%), and eight were isolates (40%). Twenty-three respondents stated that Lynn didn't care about her appearance or didn't take pride in it. "I'd think she only cared about her appearance to a cer- tain point, not about her grooming." "Doesn't take pride in her appearance." "She cares more about her clothes than herself." "Doesn't care about impressing people." "Maybe she had money, but not the self-interest." "Didn't care much about appearance, although had money." Twelve reSpondents said that she was "sloppy" or "careless," "untidy about other things," or "not aware of cleanliness." lEight respondents were from 402A (50%) and five were from 417A (50%), four were from 401 (100%). Groups 407A (27.3%), 427 (42.9%), 417C (33.3%), 402C (33.3%) and 4073 (60%) had three critical "impressions" each, while groups 414 (66.7%), 417B (40%), and 409 (40%) had two each and 412 had one. The only RFS groups not forming critical impressions of Lynn were 411 and 421. 179 "I'd think she was sort of careless, untidy about other things, not just her hair." "I doubt if she takes baths. You could wear lots of good clothes and have leprosy under it. She has no res- pect for herself, her health, etc." "She was probably messy at home and in other habits." "Hair is indicative of other sloppiness." "Think she was a slob." "I'd think she was untidy and rather irresponsible. If she can't keep her general appearance neat, she probably doesn't have other things she's involved in tidy or organized." Other critical impressions of Lynn are as follows: "Would say she is a lazy person . . . Hair and keeping self neat and clean is a reflection on entire personality.‘ "Think she was lazy or something." "I'd think she was kind of silly to waste all her ef- fort on her clothes and do nothing about her hair." "Would think she was a clothes nut." "I wouldn't think she was too smart." "I would think lower of her than I did the other girls you've mentioned. She could keep her hair neat without any real strain on her budget." "I wouldn't like her if it was dirty and ratted or even if it was just dirty." ". . . her hair is probably a reflection and I feel sorry for her." "I would think that I didn't care for her too much." "Wouldn't think much of her." "Careless." "Think mostly that her family and social life are based on money and doesn't have enough sense to be well-- groomed. Even with the best clothes, she obviously doesn't realize that it takes more than clothes to make the person." "Has sort of lopsided tastes." "I'd think it was too bad, feel sorry for her . . . I think hair may reflect the personality." "Sounds like she's selfish. Her parents are probably giving her the clothes, but she's taking no pride in her- self, careless." "I wouldn't like her . . . I don't think she cares enough about her appearance. This indicates that she. wouldn't care about any kind of friend. She wouldn't really want a friend." "Maybe something wrong in her home life, because you learn at home how to care for appearance and she hasn't." "I'd think she probably didn't care what her hair-looked like and thought that her clothes and money would make up for it. She figured that East Lansing had reputation for being rich and so she'd be accepted anyway. Nobody'd care about her hair." 180 Three respondents made neutral impressions of Lynn. Two thought that she simply wasn't aware of the impression that her hair gave and two thought that "she must be awfully tired, too tired to set her hair," adding "I know what it's like. I think it's awfully hard to fit in time for hair." Three respondents mentioned that they thought her parents bought her clothes and one stated, "Her parents are concerned with showing off their wealth." The other respondents made various remarks in regard to her appearance and caring for her hair. When asked the question, "Which do you think is more important-—expensive clothes or neat hair, the results were as follows: 101 Neat hair (76RFS, 12 MP, 13 Is.) 1 Not neat hair, but clean hair (RFS member) 2 Neat hair, although clothes help and should be stylish (l RFS, 1 Is.) 9 Expensive clothes (5RFS members, 4 Isolates) 3 Neat, decent or good clothes, but not expensive (RFS members) 6 Both neat hair and neat or nice clothes (RFS members) 3 Neat hair and expensive clothes equally important (RFS members) > 1 Medium between expensive clothes and neat hair (RFS member) Cleanliness more important than either (RFS member) Neither important (2 RFS, 3 MP, 1 Is.) Don't know (ZRFS, 1 Is., 1 MP) hmlfl Of the nine girls1 answering "expensive clothes," one was of the upper class, six were of the lower-upper or upper-middle class and two were of the middle class. Thus 66.7% of the respondents had scores ranging from 32-45. 1Five of the girls were RFS members (two from 417A, two from 402C, and one from 417C), and four were isolates. 181 Seven of the respondents answering "neat hair" ex- plained their answer by saying that one can have nice clothes without their being expensive. "Can have clothes that aren't real expensive and still look nice." "You can always find clothes that aren't expensive." "You can get just as nice-looking clothes in the cheaper stores." ' ‘ ”You can get clothes that aren't that expensive but are nice." "You can look just as nice with inexpensive clothes." "Can have nice clothes without paying a lot of money." "Clothes don't have to be expensive to be nice." (Three other respondents explained that they answered "neat hair," because "people can't tell how expensive your clothes are, "you can wear clothes that look expensive but. are not," and "you can't always tell the price of clothes." When asked if they would like Lynn as a girl friend, 67 replied "yes" (48.9%), 17 of these conditionally, 31 said "depends" (22.6%), and 28 rejected Lynn (20.4%), and 11 (8%) said "don't know." A greater proportion of RFS members and isolates accepted Lynn than did MP members. There was little difference, however, in the proportions rejecting Lynn. RFS% MP% 15% Accept 51.5 25.0 ’ 55.0 Would you :gk: Lyn“ g:§?:d:n:: 27.7 56.3 25.0 girl friend? Reject 20.8 18.7 20.0 ‘When asked if they would ask Lynn to run around with their group, 79 (57.7%) said "yes" (24 of these conditionally), 16 (11.7%) answered "depends," 31 (22.6%) rejected Lynn and 182 11 said "don't know." There were 58 double acceptors (ac- cepting Michelle both as a girl friend and to run with group), 46 saw their groups in full accord with their ac- 1 Forty-five were RFS members ceptance, while ten did not. (44.6%), fOur were MP members (25%) and nine were isolates (45%). There were 23 double rejectors (rejecting Lynn both as a girl friend and running around with their group). Eighteen saw their groups in full accord with their rejec- tion while four did not.2 Eighteen were RFS members (17.8%), two were MP members (12.5%), and three were isolates (15%). Summary- Thirty-six and five-tenths per cent of total respon- dents made critical impressions of Lynn. Eighty per cent thought neat or clean hair was more important than expensive clothes, while seven per cent viewed expensive clothes as more important. Seven respondents mentioned that clothes didn't have to be expensive to be nice. . Approximately 49% accepted Lynn as a girl friend, while 20.5% rejected her. Fifty-eight per cent said they would invite her to run around with their group, while 23% said they would not. There were 58 double acceptors (42% of total respon- lTwo answered "depends." 2 One answered "don't know." 183 dents), and 23 double rejectors (17% of total respondents). E4 Comments Concerning the "Judgment by Appearance" Syndrome In the course of questioning, ten respondents made references to the "pOpular" group or groups. Seven of the references indicated that the popular group would reject or accept on the basis of clothing. "The so-called popular girls . . . usually pick girls with striking clothes." (RFS 414) "More popular groups put an emphasis on appearance." (RFS 417C) "The so-called pOpular group judges more on clothing and this sort of thing." (RFS 402A) "In the elite popular group, you have to dress almost in a different outfit every day of the school year." (RFS 411) One of the other three respondents said that if "the popular girls" thought Michelle would "be an asset to the group, they'd grab her right away" (RFS 401). Another res- pondent said, "Some of the cliques of real popular kids are snobbish and don't like new kids in their group" (421), while another remarked that "if you haven't made it into the popular crowd by now, you're never going to" (402A). Three respondents mentioned that specific groups or individuals such as "the social climbers," the cliquey group," and "the more elite kids," "group that judges on looks," would reject on the basis of appearance, while two said that "one group . . . has appearance as their main standard." Another commented that "certain girls are very particular and wouldn't have anything to do with someone not dressed sharp." Thirty other respondents were less Specific in their 184 "accusations" and referred to "some" groups or individuals as rejecting or accepting on the basis of appearance. The following are representative comments: "Some [groups] judge on appearance only" (RFS 401). "There are some groups that have a standard of clothing that must be maintained" (RFS 402A). "In some of the groups it's very important how you dress" (RFS 409). - "Some groups do make a big point of finding new students to join their ranks, if they have nice looking clothes" (402A). "There are some [groups] that wouldn't [accept] because their goal is dressing fashionably" (414). 6 "There are some people who judge you by what you wear, rather than personality" (402C). "Some peOple don't like people who are out of style no matter how nice they are" (402A). "Some people think clothes and if good looking are more important than what kind of person one is" (4073). "Some groups put quite a large emphasis on clothes" (402A) . "There are some girls--I feel they won't go far--who only think about clothes, not grades, not if they go to college or anything" (427). Another eight respondents made more "generalized references" to "many" or "a lot" of groups or people rejec- ting or accepting on the basis of clothing. "There are many groups that do judge people by their dress" (MP). "Lot of the groups tend to judge others by their first appearance" (402B). "There's a lot of . . . groups that put emphasis just on dress" (417C). "A lot of people think it's more important to be nice looking than to have a good personality" (427). "Many people judge more on clothing than on personal- ity" (Is.) . Eight other respondents referred to "they" meaning all 1 other groups as rejecting or accepting on the basis of l"They" was used by respondents when asked, "WOuld all groups do the same as your group?" 185 appearance, while two respondents saw everyone generally judging by appearance. clothing,’ "I think peOple in this school care how they look and how their friends look" (MP). "On the whole, people judge other peOple on their ap- pearance first and then on their personality"1 (407A). Despite the overwhelming comments of "judgment by there were two respondents who indicated that there were groups not particularly concerned about appearance or aspects of it. "Some groups don't really care what people look like" (402A). (She rejected Jean and comment followed the question, "Would all groups do the same as your group?") "There is a certain group of kids who just think that if clothes are nice, they don't need to take care of grooming" (417A). "She rejected Lynn and comment fol- lowed "all groups" question.) Nine2 respondents mentioned others or selves (some groups, they, we, etc.) as being "materialistic" or "status seekers." "Some people look at clothes and money as being every- thing" (407B). "Clothes and material possessions such as cars and things, are very important to them [other groups]" (Is.). "They [other groups] are too materialistic" (402C). "We are all very materialistic . . . They [other groups] are materialistic" (402C). "Too many of them [other groups] are status seekers" (417A). "Some groups would just see if she gets the money and then let her in" (401). "Some of the kids base their friendships on material ob- jects instead of personality and character" (MP). "Couple of my friends are pretty materialistic . . . The higher up the social ladder you are, the more careful you have to be" (409). 1This individual stated, ironically, earlier that "I don't think you can judge a person just by what they wear." 2Two of these were also coded as making "clothing" comments. 186 "For some it [acceptance] would depend on whether Dad was top drawer." (407A). Another six respondents expressed generalized dif- ficulty in being accepted into some groups or cliques. "Some of the groups are stuck-up and snobby and wouldn't accept just anybody into the groups" (411). "Cliques--you're already in with luck when you come-- if not, can't get in" (Is.). "There are some cliques that would not go outside of regular tradition [in acceptance] . . . so many cliques have own stereotype ideas" (4173). "Some [groups] pay more attention to strict rules [in regard to acceptance]" (402A). "There are always some narrow-minded ones [groups] who are going to exclude peOple for dumb reasons" (402A). "Some [groups] are snobbish . . . a lot of people feel they are 'high'" (417C). Seventy-four1 respondents made comments about "judg- ment by clothing," "materialistic groups," and "cliques." At least 25% of the members of each group made comments, ex- cept for 407A which is both the most popular and best dres- sed group which had only one respondent or 9%. The only comment made from 407A was a ”some individuals' appearance" response of "some kids-put more stress on being well-groomed than others." This may be indicative that many of the com- ments were directed at this particular group since a group would most likely not direct critical comments toward itself. Groups with the highest proportion of responsive members were 409 (100%), 414 (100%), 407B.(80%), 412 (75%), 427 (71.4%), l . The two respondents commenting on groups not con- cerned about appearance, the two seeing everyone judging by clothing criteria are not included; one respOndent on popu- larity, and the respondent seeing everyone as materialistic were not included since they didn't see or feel "Only others judging or discriminating." 187 402B (66.7%), 402A (62.8%), and 411 (60%).1 lForty per cent of both 417A and 417B, 33.3% of 417C, and 25% of 421 made responses.