Times Trends

ORION KIM CHIEF VISUAL EDITOR

Whether it be a surge in retro clothing, a new TikTok dance, or crushing fitness plan, trends are omnipresent in today’s world. So what exactly are trends?

The basis of trends is related to imitation. Humans naturally mimic the people around them, often unintentionally. An article in NU Sci Magazine writer Basma Gomaa suggests that people follow trends because it’s the easy way out. “It works as a mental shortcut. By following what others are doing, it shortens and eases the thought process for someone.”

Another article from Greater Good Magazine goes as far as to say that humans are more imitative than innovative. Connor Wood wrote that “Instead of Homo sapiens, or ‘man the knower,’ we’re really Homo imitans: ‘man the imitator’.”

Imitation can start small, like subconsciously mimicking body language, but can also have larger impacts, trends, especially in a world full of rapid social networking.

New trends arise every week. According to junior Aurelia Meza, people follow trends more nowadays because of a fear of missing out: “People don’t want to be seen as the odd one out; they feel like they will be ‘in’ if they follow the trend,” she said.

This can encourage a herd mentality where people quickly discard logical thinking and follow what everyone else is doing.

Senior Shobin Ansite thinks trends can be beneficial, but people should be selective about which trends they follow.

“People shouldn’t follow trends just because they’re popular; they should follow them because they like the trend,” he said.

However, following social trends can do deeper than what an individual likes or doesn’t.

Sophomore Mas Kouakou said, “The Ukraine trend was helpful because people started paying more attention to it because of social media, and they received more donations for the war,” he said.

Other trends like thrifting can have a positive influence on the world. Not only does thrifting bring people together through a shared love of retro clothing, but it is better for the environment and more ethical than conventional shopping. According to the Goodwill website, “By shopping for things second hand, you are voting with your dollar as a consumer to not support the industries that cause pollution and tons of waste.”

Among all the benefits of following trends, there are still drawbacks.

Kouakou believes that trends can “make [people] seem unoriginal, and at some point they become annoying.”

This can create a space where adolescents are too comfortable fitting in with the herd, and too afraid to follow a different path.