Are you comfortable in your clothes? The garments we wear can affect our mental state in positive and negative ways.
Getting dressed in the morning is a task we do daily, some more consciously than others. We get dressed for work in the morning, choose casual clothes for lunch with a friend, dress up for dinner in the evening or dress differently for work or school. And with each outfit, we — intentionally or unintentionally — communicate non-verbally to the outside world.
It’s no question that what we wear is who we are because fashion is a way to express ourselves, our identity and even how we feel. The clothes we wear daily reflect how we want others to perceive us and how we see ourselves. Clothes even influence our cognitive abilities. The way we dress has a significant impact on our mental health.
In 2012, researchers from Northwestern University in the US found that wearing specific articles of clothing affected the wearer’s psychology and performance. The researchers concluded that clothes have a symbolic meaning. When we wear a piece of clothing with a specific sense, these clothes can influence our psychological state. It’s called “enclothed cognition.”
For example, a lab coat is associated with intelligence and scientific thinking. According to the researchers, when a person wears a lab coat, these characteristics symbolised by the skin seem to positively affect their performance of specific tasks. The study results show that what we wear and the symbolic meaning we associate with particular fashion items has measurable effects on our mental state.
“This experiment shows how clothes can affect our attention, how we feel about ourselves and our competencies,” says Camay Abraham. He has a Master’s degree in Applied Psychology in Fashion from the London College of Fashion.
These effects can be positive but also harmful. “It could mean a negative state of being if the item in question is known to be associated with a negative construct,” says Abraham. So “enclothed cognition” is a two-way street, just like our daily clothing choice can make us feel good or bad.
When we don’t feel our best, our clothes can make us feel better and act as our potential armour. On those days, I find it challenging to combine the right outfit. Sometimes I try to imitate someone else’s style because on them it makes them look fierce and robust; however, I quickly realise that those same clothes don’t have the same effect on me as they did on them, And so I become uncomfortable; I’ll be tugging and constantly pulling on the garments I’m wearing, acutely aware of what I put on.
Usually, our mindset focuses on our body fitting into specific clothing, on how our bodies would look a lot better if we were a size smaller. Often, while buying a particular garment, I might overthink how this would’ve looked a lot better on me if I was thinner. I drift away and remember that wearing what I want is a part of my wellbeing, and Clothes are supposed to fit my body; my body is not supposed to fit into clothes that aren’t my size, and I stand by it.
journalist Abraham sees a relationship between cognitive dissonance and fashion. The term ‘cognitive dissonance describes a psychological phenomenon where an action that doesn’t align with our personal beliefs or values leads to a conflict that causes mental uneasiness. To reduce the mental discomfort, we either change the action to align with our beliefs again or convince ourselves that the step is actually what we want to do.
In my case, by not wearing that type of outfit again, I bring my actions and beliefs back into alignment.
“You realise that the style doesn’t fit your beliefs, ideals, or values, so psychologically, you feel uncomfortable and will try to dissipate those feelings by changing your style,” says Abraham. And I do; I will go back to wearing what makes me comfortable. Alternatively, we convince ourselves that the outfit shows a new part of ourselves and is precisely what we want.
The question is: should you dress how you want to feel or dress how you feel? “I think you should dress how you want to feel because you should focus on how you aspire to feel instead of how you are feeling,” says Abraham.
Dressing how you want to feel is a way to embody the state of mind you seek and positively shape other people’s perceptions of you.
But fashion doesn’t simply shape our perception and self-expression; style also influences how we are treated by other people, which can impact our mental well-being.
Abraham offers an example: “By wearing the newest trends, people may be more accepting of you because you are following within this framework of what is acceptable in society at the time.”
Clothes signify how we want to be treated and what social group we belong to or are accepted into. Acceptance for who we are and what we wear gives us peace of mind, just as wearing comfortable clothes can positively affect our mental state.
