We’ve all seen,or at least heard of, the iconic movie  Mean Girls in which newcomer Kady Heron infiltrates the most popular group of girls in school The Plastics

    Now, by the end of the movie we are supposed to have learned that striving to be the most popular kids in school isn’t all it’s cracked up to be-nothing new.

    But what if I told you there was a study out there that said high school popularity could lead to symptoms depression in young adulthood? I know it sounds a little strange, but this study offers a little bit of truth. After all, high school doesn’t last forever, so it would make sense that the popularity wouldn’t last either.

    A group of researchers from the University of Virginia followed 169 high school sophomores from differing racial and economic backgrounds.

    The study followed this group of students for 10 years , and results showed that students who maintained close intimate friendships during and after high school showed fewer signs of  depression and anxiety in young adulthood. In turn, those who chose to maintain

    Personally, I was a little surprised by that last finding. You wouldn’t expect someone who thrives off socializing with anyone and everyone to struggle with this very skill as they matured just as you don’t expect an introvert to walk into a room and start talking to a random stranger.

    But the results of the study seemed to be rooted in the idea of forming close, genuine friendships during adolescence. Surrounding yourself with close people who are positive influences and help build up your character is what will really set up up for success in the future.

    Take me, for example. I would say I know a fair amount of people in my class, and a fair amount of people know me. However, there are about only five or six people who I consider to be close friends, and these are the people who make me laugh and smile on a bum day.

    In other words, what I-and this study-have  been trying to say this entire time is: quality over quantity. We’ve all heard this before, and most of us would logically choose a couple of close knit relationships over social appearances.

    But, I don’t think most of us have heard of the potentially damaging effects of really choosing quantity over quality.

    Of course, every study has its drawbacks, Specifically, this study had a small sample size, and the data did not prove a cause and effect relationship between popularity and lifetime changes-rather a correlation

    So,  if you were freaking out because you fit the definition of being “popular,” try not to worry-too much.It is easy to get caught up in a crowd and, you’d be hard pressed to find who wouldn’t enjoy to be well-liked by a lot of their peers.

    Take a moment to examine how the people you surround yourself with make you feel, and how connected you are to them. If you’re well-liked by a large group and have high quality friendships, then there’s no reason why you can’t have both.

Just remember: keep your friends close and those same friends closer.