Why are the "bad kids" the most popular?

Bad kids acquire a reputation for rebelliousness, something that is attractive for a lot of kids because they are perceived as having gone against the norm, against authority, against the establishment and what is deemed “good”. They are looked upon as unique, daring, and unorthodox——that is why they are appealing. “Good kids” are already a part of the establishment, although good, they aren’t perceived as “one-of-a-kind”, rather as ho-hum. But once the novelty wears off, and people start seeing how destructive and negative bad kids are, they begin to realize that it’s not worth it, but by then it’s too late——some kids head down the wrong path following their bad peers and eventually self-destruct.

Asking for his autograph kinda suprises me. But, what do you expect in a society where the “bad” gets all the attention? Also, the kid probably has other characteristics that make him a leader. Some very successful people have a childhood full of misbehaving.

I think it just has to do with the idea that being bad and breaking rules is seen as “cool”. It’s something the other kids see as taboo and forbidden and are probably not going to do it, even if they have the urge to do something like that every now and then, and so when someone goes and does it, it’s cool and admirable to them. People who go against the norm and do their own thing are often admired, even if it’s negative.

Now, in my experiences, yes, kids thought it was cool sometimes when other kids did daring or “bad” things (I know I did sometimes). But in general, the actual “bad kids”, the ones who broke the rules all the time and got in trouble all the time at school were just seen as losers that no one wanted to have anything to do with.

I was popular in school. I was a goody-goody. :P It just depends. Most of the people at my school who had the most friends were nice, had a good sense of humor, and also were not afraid to “go there”. But being too much of a jerk or a criminal was not going to make you all that well-liked. That was just my experience. =]

Also, maybe he was standing up for/against something that the other kids identified with?

The main developmental task of the kids to which you are referring to to differentiate themselves from their parents and substitute authority figures.

Those rude, rebellious kids are perceives by their peers as being extraordinarily successful at that task. Of course, we adults know that the bright, socially adept kids are really the most successful but the followers gravitate to the more ostentatious displays of “independence” because they are perceived as powerful.

I know this is a dull, academic style answer, but it is a good explanation.

It is true that the kids who misbehave the most gets the most attention. There were many times when my boss asked me for the name of a kid, and said the reason she doesn’t know their names is because the never get in trouble.

Being good is boring and so the bad get attention. Same thing goes for how us guys get attention of the ladies.

To me from what I have seen if you are labeled as “good” you are seen as an “outsider”. It seems the real rebellion today would to be a good kid or good person. Criticise all you want but this is very true. This does not just pertain to kids but adults as well.

Huh… My experience matches with @DominicX.‘s Standing up for yourself/others against “The Man” was cool, but only if done correctly. The nice, friendly kids were the most popular. Real trouble-makers were looked down on.

Does this kid throw tantrums and disrupt the flow of work as a matter of course? If he does, then that’s a problem. But if he was simply “mad as hell and not going to take it anymore”, even in his own mind, then he was probably doing what the other kids wanted to do, but didn’t have the guts to do. Is the boss a bit of a tyrant? There’s so many variables.

There’s breaking the rules that are unjust in that Thoreau sort of way like King and Gandhi, and then there’s Marlon Brando in the Wild One: “What are you rebelling against, Johnny?” “Whaddya got?”