Clothing reveals:
-both the themes and the formal
relationships which serve a culture as
orienting ideas, and
- the real or imagined basis according
to which cultural categories are
organized . . .
[Consequently,] the principles of a
world are found woven into the fabric
of its clothing.
(George McCracken, 1988, p.60)
Considered as a whole, the
system of American clothing
amounts to a very complex
scheme of cultural categories
and the relations between them,
a veritable map -- it does not
exaggerate to say -- of the
cultural universe.
(Marshall Sahlins, 1976, p. 179)
Definitions
Clothing - any tangible or material object connected to
the body (i.e. shoes, jewelry) - a product that you wear
or apply
Appearance - total composite image created by human
body and any modifications or embellishments or
coverings that are visually perceived-includes
physical attributes as well as clothing
Appearance Management - encompasses all attention,
decisions, and acts related to one’s appearance-that
is, the process of thinking about and actually carrying
out activities pertaining to the way one looks
Appearance Perception - the process of observing and
making evaluations or drawing inferences based
upon how people look
Definitions
Apparel - any body covering actual garments
constructed of fabric - this term is mostly used by
fashion industry
Personal Adornment - any form of bodily decoration
(clothes, paint, makeup) or alteration of the
body’s appearance (dieting, muscle)
Dress - often used interchangeably with clothing
and adornment, can also refer to the act of
covering the body with clothing and accessories.
(gender implications - male dress)
Costume - a style of clothing that characterizes a
cultural or historical context
Definitions
Style - a distinctive characteristic or way of expression;
style in clothing describes the lines that distinguish
one form or shape from another
Fashion - a dynamic social process by which new styles
are created, introduced to a consuming public, and
popularly accepted by that public.
AS OBJECT - a style accepted by a large group of
people at a particular time
Wearable Art - use of clothing as a medium for artistic
communication, to reflect the uniqueness and
personal creativity of the artist/designer; a strong
movement in the United States growing out of the
attitude of the 1960’s that rejected anonymous mass
production
The study of the social psychology of
appearance may be characterized as follows:
1) interdisciplinary
2) focus on meaning
3) contextual
4) use of critical thinking (dialectical
reasoning)
1) Interdisciplinary
That is, concepts and methods from more than
one discipline or field of knowledge are
integrated, compared, and contrasted-especially social psychology as derived from
both sociology and psychology; cultural
anthropology; and semiotics (the
interdisciplinary study of how meaning is
produced). In this way, the social, cognitive,
and cultural forces underlying appearance
management and perception as forms of
human behavior may be considered in relation
to one another.
2) focus on meaning
This involves the study of the processes
influencing how individuals come to make
symbolic associations with appearance cues,
as well as the consequences of such
associations for social interactions.
3) contextual
The meanings associated with appearance
symbols are studied in and across social
contexts. A social context includes the
identities of, and relationships among the
participants as well as any physical or
situational parameters that set the stage for
social interaction. Context includes social,
psychological, and cultural dimensions; the
interconnectedness among these dimensions
is of primary concern.
4) use of critical thinking (dialectical
reasoning)
Critical thinking about the meaning of dress
involves three phases: first, an ability to
examine different meanings or ideas with the
intent of discovering an underlying common
meaning, so that conceptual categories may
be identified; second, the discovery of
distinctions among apparently similar ideas
and meanings; and third, seeing appearance
symbols in relation to the wholeness of social
context (and recognizing that they are only
one dimension of social context).
APPEARANCE CODING IN
CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY
The “culture” of clothing and appearance consists of three
primary and distinctive but interrelated components:
Technology--material artifacts used
textile science, anthropology, chemistry, physics,
material science, sociocultural aspects of dress
Social Structure--behavior; the ways in which humans
organize themselves or behave
social psychology of dress, sociology, social
psychology, psychology, anthropology,
communications
APPEARANCE CODING IN
CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY
Ideology--the beliefs, attitudes, and beliefs held
sociocultural aspects of dress,
communications, rhetoric, semiotics (the
study of the means of production of
meaning), cultural studies, political science,
sociology, anthropology
CULTURAL PATTERNS IN CLOTHING
I. TECHNICAL PATTERNS IN APPAREL
II. AESTHETIC PATTERNS IN DRESS
• CORPORAL ADORNMENT
(permanent body modification; usually in traditional
cultures)
• EXTERNAL ADORNMENT
(temporary adornment; indicates rapidly change in
culture)
CULTURAL PATTERNS IN CLOTHING
III. MORAL PATTERNS ENFORCING SOCIAL
NORMS
(In increasing order of severity of sanctions)
•
•
•
•
FOLKWAYS
CUSTOMS
MORES
LAWS
IV. RITUALISTIC PATTERNS
• RITES OF PASSAGE
•
RITES OF INTENSIFICATION
CULTURE:
CHARACTERISTICS:
A. SHARED
B. LEARNED
C. INTEGRATED
D. SYMBOLIC
E. DYNAMIC
F. ADAPTIVE
ETHNOCENTRISM
CULTURAL RELATIVITY
CULTURAL PERSPECTIVE
Focus: the symbolic realm of social life,
linked to:
-arts & literature
-media
-ideologies (value systems)
Derived from: anthropology, women’s
studies, consumer behavior, ethnic
studies, sociology, semiotics
Terms:
culture: the beliefs, behaviors, attitudes and
products of human activity, characteristic of a
particular population
ideology: main beliefs and values characterizing a
group, often embedded in everyday things or
media: not questioned
expressive culture (material culture): artifacts or
products of human activity, including pop culture,
clothing