REESE WITHERSPOON is glad she's not bit**y to people - anymore.

The LEGALLY BLONDE (2001) beauty shamefully admits she wasn't the nicest person while in high school - but has learned some valuable lessons about how to treat people since.

She says, "There was a time early on in high school when there was a lot of pressure to be mean. You were part of the cool crowd if you were mean-spirited toward other people. I remember my mom - one day she came in and my best friend and I were being so mean about somebody, saying we thought they were a dork or something. "

She continues, "I remember my mom saying 'That's the most awful thing! I don't want you speaking like that in my house. ' And I thought, 'Oh mom. Whatever'. It was the cool thing to do - tear other people down. I think that's so uncool now. You do it because you're so completely insecure about yourself that you can't be cool about other people. "(MB/CG/KW)

Source: WENN