SOCIAL

Psychology and Fashion

By Jade Emerson Photo by Kila Rennaker

We all have that one piece of clothing that makes us feel unstoppable. For me, it’s a pair of high-waisted yellow pants. It doesn’t matter if I’m tackling a coffee date, job interview or a trip to the post office; if I’m wearing those pants, I’m unstoppable. Maybe it’s because wearing pants makes me feel strong. Maybe it’s because I feel confident about how my body looks in them. Or maybe it’s simply because they’re yellow. Whatever that little bit of unexplainable magic is in those pants, they are the embodiment of everything I want to be in life.

Yet there’s more to my pants than magic. According to the recently developed field of psychology, how we dress can impact our relationship with our body, our sense of self and our moods. From the chemical processes in our brain to societal standards and assumptions, there’s no denying that the way we dress impacts us.

For Peyton Sims, her exploration into fashion began her freshman year of high school with a pair of overalls. When she first got out of the car on the first day of school, she was so nervous because she wouldn’t look like everyone else. “To my surprise, I received compliments from people I’d never even met before that day,” Peyton says. So, the following weekend she went thrifting for the first time with her mom. “I found vintage sweaters, a yellow rain jacket, and T-shirts that I was so excited to wear. Over the years, I finally realized that dressing for myself would give me the confidence that I’d been searching for.”

Now in her first year at college, family heirlooms, platform Doc Martens and power blazers have become Peyton’s statement pieces. Picking out her outfit each day, whether it be for an exam or coffee with friends, helps her to not only control how she’s presented to the world, but also how she feels. “Once I found my own style, I had a stronger sense of who I wanted to be in life,” she says.

Allison Dillard, a local licensed professional psychologist, views fashion as a tool to communicate who we are to the world. She describes how clothing can not only reflect our view of self, but also either exude or detract confidence depending on how comfortable we are with what we’re wearing. In her counseling office, she observes how mood and dress tend to correlate with patterns of depression and positive mood shifts in her patients. “Clothing does not define us, but we can and do use it to express ourselves whether consciously or unconsciously,” Allison says.

Right: Jade Emerson pictured running errands in her favorite pair of yellow pants.

Recently, the term “dopamine dressing” has been coined to describe the chemical process of selecting mood-boosting clothes. Dopamine, the “happy hormone,” is released into the brain when wearing certain clothes, giving an effect similar to listening to music, exercising or meditation. “If we are feeling low, dopamine dressing is a good way to help shift ourselves and our attention to where we want to be if we are struggling. Dress does not solve our problems or take away pain, but it can support us if we allow it to,” Allison says.

In a society where so much of a woman’s identity is determined by her appearance, developing a personal style that caters to our emotions equips us with a new power: Maybe by controlling how we dress, we can define our own identity and boost how we feel. “We associate the clothes we have on with moods and feelings, state of safety or strength, and confidence to tackle a challenge or enjoy an event. We dress for the mood we are in or want to be in,” Allison says.

Yet however promising the mood-boosting effects of confidence dressing are, clothing also has the power to counter them, causing negative feelings toward oneself. For Allison, who has always felt like fashion is an expression of herself, pregnancy has presented a new

We all have that one piece of clothing that makes us feel unstoppable. For me, it’s a pair of high-waisted yellow pants.”

- JADE EMERSON

“If we are feeling low, dopamine dressing is a good way to help shift ourselves and our attention to where we want to be if we are struggling. Dress does not solve our problems or take away pain, but it can support us if we allow it to.”

ALLISON DILLARD, a licensed professional psychologist

challenge where the limits of maternity clothing emphasizes parts of her body she doesn’t want to focus on, shares aspects of her personal life she doesn’t want shared, and doesn’t display the professionalism she wants communicated at work. “I’m having to learn new ways to express myself and lift my mood as my current limited clothing options aren’t able to fulfill the role my clothes previously played,” she says.

Peyton also shares how the way someone dresses can quickly lead to assumptions about an individual’s lifestyle, class or personality, something she has experienced when receiving funny looks for wearing ripped jeans or crop tops. “If I’ve learned anything through my love for fashion, it’s that there should be no standards placed on anyone’s personal style. The only thing that should matter is that someone feels comfortable and confident in the clothes they choose to wear,” Peyton says.

Fashion is more than runways and overpriced shoes. Fashion is armor, control, a statement and a feeling all at once. Fashion is control, power and personal expression. “Fashion is our first impression of who we are and how we want to be perceived, so why not use that to our advantage as women?” Allison says. Women still have stereotypes and projections to overcome, but fashion allows them the opportunity to have a voice without saying anything. “To exude strength and dignity. We can never control how someone sees us, but we can dress in a way that tells people who we are if they are willing to listen,” she says.

If fashion is a conversation between us in the world, then only through understanding the psychology of fashion can we take part in that conversation. And on the stage or screen, our first impression of any character we meet comes from what they wear. Are they dressed in moody grays, powerful jewel tones, or youthful pastels? What parts of themselves do they choose to cover or reveal? How has their style changed since we first met them? And what are they trying to tell us through what they’re wearing? In a recent interview with Vogue, Heidi Bivens, the costume designer of the show “Euphoria,” described how she used costumes to reflect the psychology of each character.

Although our lives (and our outfits) might be a little bit different than the lives of characters, the philosophy still applies: The way we dress impacts us.