Clothing, dating to its origin, was supposed to serve a function. Now, fashion does much more than that as
it is a way people choose to express themselves. Whether they want to dress aligning with cultural standards or exceed those, there is an emotional attachment to fashion. “Keeping up” with appearance and trends can result in stress, depression and quite the investment. Judgement from peers arises as opinions constitute how “stylish” one is, where one can be either approved or rejected by social groups. One’s taste in relation to cultural consumption is relied upon their standards in society, “Taste is the expression of cultural capital and it becomes embodied in practice” (Rafferty 2011).
One’s social status can be defined by their personal commodities, some may be even given a price to their self-worth based on how much their clothing is. While reading this might sound crazy, it is very obvious there are positive and negative connotations by the types of brands people wear. A study found that many parents, the ability to dress their child in designer labels is seen as “good parenting.” Further, parents are judged by how much money they spend on their child rather than the actual care they take. They also feel responsible for how they dress in that many of the times, their child’s social inclusion depends on it (Pole 2007).
Cognitive age also acts as mediator between fashion attitudes and fashion behaviors. The fact that personal possession of fashionable clothes or accessories is considered an extension of the self, many pay much attention into what they buy based on their age, in order to fit into society. Studies have shown that when people pursue a high fashion interest, they think of themselves as being younger than their chronological age, while people with a conservative style have relatively older cognitive age. This plays a role in the willingness of consumers to adopt certain fashion products, and even trends (Lin and Kang‐Ning Xi 2012).
Citations:
Rafferty, K. (2011). Class-based emotions and the allure of fashion consumption. Journal Of Consumer Culture, 11(2), 239-260. doi:10.1177/1469540511403398
Pole, Christopher. 2007. “Researching Children and Fashion: An Embodied Ethnography.” Childhood: A Global Journal Of Child Research 14, no. 1: 67-84. ERIC, EBSCOhost (accessed October 12, 2017).
Lin, Yu‐Tse, and Kang‐Ning Xia. 2012. “Cognitive age and fashion consumption.” International Journal Of Consumer Studies 36, no. 1: 97-105. PsycINFO, EBSCOhost (accessed October 12, 2017)