Includes bibliographical references (p. 399-433).

Meet the cafeteria fringe -- Late summer to early fall: the popularity myth. Quirk theory and the secret of popularity ; Why are popular people mean? -- Fall: why quirk theory works. In the shadow of ...the freak tree ; It's good to be the cafeteria fringe -- Winter: outcast profiling and other dangers. Challenges ; Misperceptions -- Late winter to early spring: being excluded doesn't mean that anything's wrong with you. A brief introduction to group psychology ; Why labels stick : the motivations of the Normal Police -- Spring: quirk theory's origins : why these issues are hardest in school. Changing perceptions ; Two steps forward, one step back -- Late spring to early summer: popular vs. outcast. Popularity doesn't lead to happiness ; The rise of the cafeteria fringe ; Cafeteria fringe : lucky and free. Read More

Journalist Robbins explores the ways group identity theories play out among cliques--and the students they exclude. She reveals the new labels students stick onto each other today, the long-term effects of this marginalization, and the reasons students in these categories are often shunned. Then she celebrates them. The homogenization of ...the US education system has made outcasts more important than ever. In this conformist, creativity-stifling society, the innovation, courage, and differences of outcasts--nerds, weirdos, punks, etc.--are crucial to progress. Robbins intertwines psychology with science, addressing questions such as "Why are popular people mean?" and "Why do social labels stick?" As in Pledged and The Overachievers, Robbins follows students through the course of a year. In her other books, however, Robbins merely observed students. This time, she forces them to examine who they are and how other students perceive them, then dares them to step outside of their comfort zone to attempt social experiments at their schools--experiments that end up changing their lives.--From publisher description. Read More