Marie Claire UK Marie Claire UK
  • Fashion Fashion
      • Fashion
        • View all Fashion
        • Fashion Trends
        • Shopping
        • Watches and Jewellery
        • Fashion News
  • Beauty Beauty
      • Beauty
        • View all Beauty
        • Fragrance
        • Hair
        • Make Up
        • Skincare
        • Nails
        • Marie Claire Beauty Awards
  • Health Health
      • Health
        • View all Health
        • Fitness
        • Nutrition
        • Female Health
        • Wellbeing
  • Life Life
      • Life
        • View all Life
        • Opinions
        • Travel
        • Sustainability
        • Weddings
        • Money & Work
        • Competitions
  • Culture Culture
      • Culture
        • View all Culture
        • TV and Film
        • Celebrity News
        • Books
        • Royal News
  • Vouchers Vouchers
      • Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Mint Velvet
        • Karen Millen
        • H&M
        • nobody's child
        • ASOS
        • ARKET
        • MANGO
      • Designer Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Reiss
        • THE OUTNET
        • SSENSE
        • Mytheresa
        • Liberty London
        • Selfridges
        • Farfetch
      • Accessories
        • View all Vouchers
        • AllSaints
        • Aspinal of London
        • Charles & Keith
        • River Island
        • FitFlop
        • Kate Spade
        • Vagabond
      • Jewellery
        • View all Vouchers
        • Pandora
        • Abbott Lyon
        • Goldsmiths
        • Beaverbrooks
        • Astrid & Miyu
        • Swarovski
        • Angara Jewellery
      • Beauty
        • View all Vouchers
        • Sephora
        • Cult Beauty
        • Space NK
        • Dyson
        • Clarins
        • Look Fantastic
        • Clinique
      • Activewear
        • View all Vouchers
        • Lululemon
        • Gymshark
        • Sweaty Betty
        • Nike
        • adidas
        • New Balance
        • Helly Hansen
  • NEWSLETTER Signup to our newsletter
  • logoCreated with Sketch.
    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!


    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    You are now subscribed

    Your newsletter sign-up was successful


    An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
    Trending
    • Women in Sport 2026
    • Marie Claire Masters
    • Spring Summer 2026
    • Nail Trends 2026
    • Best Investment Bags
    • Best Perfumes
    • Digital Issues
    • Women Who Win
    1. Life

    We Knew It: Cool Kids In School End Up Being Losers In Later Life, According To Study

    Geeks FTW

    By Marie Claire
    Published 2 December 2015 In Features

    When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

    • Facebook
    • X
    • Pinterest
    Share this article
    Join the conversation
    Follow us
    Add us as a preferred source on Google
    Subscribe to our newsletter

    Geeks FTW

    Remember the cool kids at school? The ones with perfect hair, who all the boys fancied, and who seemed to breeze through life while you tripped down the stairs and constantly embarrassed yourself? Well, according to a new study, it's time for the geeks to get their revenge, because the cool kids have it tough the minute school ends.

    The study, called What Happened To The Cool Kids, was carried out by researchers from the University of Virginia and published in the journal Child Development.

    Researchers examined 180 American teenagers from the age of 13 till 23, finding that those who acted cool and were popular during their teens were more at risk of being involved in crime and developing problems such as drug and alcohol abuse.

    Source: giphy

    ‘It appears that while so-called cool teens’ behaviour might have been linked to early popularity, over time, these teens needed more and more extreme behaviours to try to appear cool, at least to a sub-group of other teens,' said Professor Joseph Allen, professor of psychology at the university.

    ‘So they became involved in more serious criminal behaviour and alcohol and drug use as adolescence progressed. These previously cool teens appeared less competent – socially and otherwise – than their less cool peers by the time they reached young adulthood.’

    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!

    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    Source: giphy

    Well, if very scientific evidence such as Mean Girls is to be believed, we can definitely see Janis being more successful at life than Regina George.

    Hear that, kids? Don't try and be cool - it'll pay off in the long run.

    Marie Claire
    Social Links Navigation

    The leading destination for fashion, beauty, shopping and finger-on-the-pulse views on the latest issues. Marie Claire's travel content helps you delight in discovering new destinations around the globe, offering a unique – and sometimes unchartered – travel experience. From new hotel openings to the destinations tipped to take over our travel calendars, this iconic name has it covered.

    Latest in Life
    Dangers of sharing photos of children online
    Life I Used to Share Photos of My Daughter Online. Horrifying New AI Data Has Made Me Stop
    Wedding planning
    Relationships I Love My Fiancé, but I Resent the Emotional Labour of Planning Our Wedding
     
     
    Mischa Anouk Smith on a sunset boat trip along Türkiye’s Turquoise Coast
    Travel Forget Capri, Türkiye’s Turquoise Coast Is the Mediterranean’s New Luxury Hotspot
    Sensoria Dolomites
    Travel Part Ski Resort, Part Sanctuary, Sensoria Dolomites is Capturing the Wellness Zeitgeist
     
     
    Latest in Features
    Fenty Beauty Pro Filtr Fluid Flex Foundation Review
    Make Up Fenty Beauty Just Replaced Its Most Iconic Foundation—3 Editors Put Its “Flexible” Full Coverage to the Test
    Charlotte Mensah Afro Hair
    Hair Charlotte Mensah Has Spent 40 Years Changing the Conversation Around Afro Hair—Now, Her Legacy Is Going on Display
     
     
    Dangers of sharing photos of children online
    Life I Used to Share Photos of My Daughter Online. Horrifying New AI Data Has Made Me Stop
    Aesthetics Safety
    Beauty "What Did She Expect?"—The Sexism and Classism Behind The UK’s Aesthetics Safety Crisis
     
     
    logoCreated with Sketch.
    • Site Archive
    • Contact Future's experts
    • Contact us
    • Terms and conditions
    • Advertise with us
    • Privacy policy
    • Cookies policy
    • About us
    Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google

    Marie Claire UK is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

    © Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.