Attire, Physical Appearance, and First

Impressions: More Is Less

Sharron J. Lennon

Department of Home Economics, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405

Franklin G. Miller

South Central Community Health Center, Bloomington, Indiana 47401

The present research modeled research on trait descriptive adjectives (Anderson, 1968, 1971, 1974, 1979; Zanna and Hamilton, 1972) and examined the manner in which the impact of a target
physical appearance cue changes as a function of the number and type of other identifiable physical appearance cues available. In a procedure similar to that used by Zanna and Hamilton (1972),
subjects viewed and rated 16 slides of stimulus persons, each of which varied in physical appearance. The 16 slides were developed from a factorial combination of four specific physical
appearance cues identified in terms of deviations from a standard. Three separate experiments were conducted. The physical appearance cues were categorized into two types according to
whether they were relevant for social situations or task-related situations. A 25 factorial design was used with repeated measurements on each factor. In accord with the basic theory, it was
hypothesized that the impact of a single physical appearance cue will be affected by the presence or absence of other such cues.

An analysis of variance was conducted and results of the statistical analysis supported the hypothesis. The impact of any one cue was found to decrease in the presence of similar cues but was
found to increase in the presence of dissimilar cues. These results imply that a given cue will have diminishing impact on first impressions when presented with similar cues but will have an
increasing impact on first impressions when presented with dissimilar cues.

Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, Vol. 3, No. 1, 1-8 (1984)

DOI: 10.1177/0887302X8400300101

Clothing Style Differences: Their Effect on the

Impression of Sociability
Barbara Hunt Johnson

8044 Gleason Rd. G-19, Knoxville, TN 37919

Richard H. Nagasawa

Sociology Department

Kathleen Peters

Home Economics Department, Arizona State University, Tempe 85281

This research examines the effect of clothing style differences on the formation of the impression of sociability. A two-by-four factorial experiment was designed to measure the effect of four
costumes on the impressions of sociability formed by males and females of a female peer. The sample included 60 male and 60 female college students, from which 15 males and 15 females were
assigned randomly to view each of the experimental costumes and to respond on an Impression Measure. Photographs of a female college student wearing two in-fashion costumes and two out-
of-fashion costumes were used to determine the degree of sociability attributed to her when she wore different clothing styles. Analysis of variance and the eta squared correlation ratio were used
to determine the type and strength of the relationships within the data. Both male and female college students evalu ated a female peer when she wore in-fashion clothing as being more sociable
than when she wore out-of-fashion clothing. The effect of clothing style on the impression of sociability was found to be statistically significant and conceptually important. (Home Economics
Research Journal, September 1977, Vol. 6, No. 1)

Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal, Vol. 6, No. 1, 58-63 (1977)
DOI: 10.1177/1077727X7700600107

Clothing and Social Identity

Richard A. Feinberg

Consumer Sciences and Retailing, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-1262

Lisa Mataro

Schering-Plough Corporation, Kenilworth, NJ 07033

W. Jeffrey Burroughs

Department of Psychology, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29631

Individuals are believed to use clothing to define and communicate their social identities to others. If this is the case, observers should be able to read and show consensus about the social
information present in clothing cues, and there should be substantial agreement between the perceived meaning of the cues to observers and the actual social identities of the individuals but only if
the clothes are specifically selected by the individuals to represent themselves. In Study 1 observers were able to perceive the social information presented in outfits selected by others to be
representative of their personalities, and these perceptions were significantly correlated with the individuals' views of themselves. In Study 2 observers were similarly able to read social information
present in jeans brand labels. However, these perceptions were not found to be related to the identities of individuals who would wear them. These findings suggest that clothing may have
meaning, but the relationship between clothing, its meaning, and identity is not a simple one.

Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, Vol. 11, No. 1, 18-23 (1992)
DOI: 10.1177/0887302X9201100103

Adult's Perception of Male Garment Styles

Edna L. Bell

Consumer & Family Studies, Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield, MO 65804-0094

The purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of male apparel styles (daring, conservative, formal; casual) on American adult perceptions of personal traits of men. The relationship
between personal traits on each of the garment styles and the clothing interest of viewers was determined Results indicated that a male stranger dressed in the daring style was considered
unattractive, not intelligent, but very popular; a male stranger formally dressed was considered attractive, intelligent, and popular; a male stranger casually dressed was viewed as unattractive, not
intelligent, and not popular; and a male stranger conservatively dressed was seen as attractive and intelligent but not popular. Respondents with high clothing interest rated the conservatively
dressed male stranger as more sociable than the stranger dressed in the daring and casual styles and preferred the formally dressed stranger.

Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, Vol. 10, No. 1, 8-12 (1991)
DOI: 10.1177/0887302X9101000102

THE EFFECTS OF CLOTHING STYLE UPON THE

REACTIONS OF A STRANGER
Authors: Judd, N.; Bull, R. H. C.; Gahagan, D.

Source: Social Behavior and Personality: an international journal, Volume 3, Number 2,

1975 , pp. 225-227(3)

Publisher: Scientific Journal Publishers

Abstract:

Our reactions to a stranger can often be influenced by the clothes he wears. In this study a
male experimenter, whilst posing as a market researcher, dressed either smartly or
untidily. Style of dress was found to have a significant influence upon the number of
agreements from both older and younger women to answer the interviewer's questions.
Dress did not have a significant influence upon men and older individuals were more
influenced by clothing than were the younger ones. The results of this study are believed
to have implications for many kinds of interview settings.

Effect of Garment Style on the Perception of

Personal Traits
Soae L. Paek

Department of Human & Family Resources, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois 60115

The personal traits formed by perceivers of a stranger clothed in two sets of polar garment styles, daring-conservative and dressy-casual, were investigated in this study. The relationship between
clothing interest ratings of subject and personal trait ratings of each garment style was also explored. The cues conveyed by four garment styles on the judgment of 18 personal traits evaluated on
1-7 semantic differential ratings revealed that a stranger dressed in conservative and casual styles was perceived to be more self-controlled, understanding, and reliable, whereas a person
dressed in daring style was regarded as more attractive and individualistic than a person clothed in other clothing styles. On the other hand, a stranger clothed in dressy style conveyed social
unease and dependency on others.

Significant positive correlations were found between the clothing interest ratings of subjects and several personal traits of daring garment style, while significant negative correlations were
disclosed between the former and attractive and popular traits of conservative and casual styles. These findings seem to indicate that first impression conveyed by different clothing styles was also
influenced by the clothing interest of perceivers.

Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, Vol. 5, No. 1, 10-16 (1986)

DOI: 10.1177/0887302X8600500102
 Clothing as communication in two business-
to-business sales settings
Elnora W. Stuart and Barbara K. Fuller
Winthrop College, USA

Available online 12 April 2002.

Abstract
Communications effects or the semiotics of clothing were examined using photographs of
a model dressed as a salesman in 7 different outfits. In studies in 2 separate industries,
381 purchasing agents' perceptions of both the salesman and the company he represents
were measured. The salesman dressed in 4 more traditional outfits was perceived as being
a better salesman, better educated, more ambitious, more conservative, and having
greater product knowledge than when wearing less traditional clothing. Similarly he was
seen as representing a larger, more ethical company with more products, better credit,
higher quality products, and better service. Similarities of perceptions among the 4
traditional outfits suggest that while the total or gestalt of dress strongly influences
evaluations, differences in individual clothing items have far less impact.
Article Outline
• References
Address correspondence to Elnora W. Stuart, School of
Business Administration, Winthrop College, Rock Hill, SC
29733, USA.
Journal of Business Research
Volume 23, Issue 3, November 1991,
Pages 269-290

Dress1 and Human Behavior Research: Sampling,

Subjects, and Consequences for Statistics
Sharron J. Lennon

Department of Textiles and Clothing, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210-1295

Leslie D. Burns

Department of Apparel, Interiors, Housing and Merchandising, Oregon State University, Corvallis,
OR 97331-5101

Kathleen L. Rowold
Department of Apparel Merchandising and Interior Design, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN
47405

Articles from the Home Economics Research Journal (Vol. 1-19) and the Clothing and Textiles Research Journal (Vol.1-9) reporting dress research that involved the use of human subjects were
content analyzed We were interested in the way probability and nonprobability sampling techniques were used, how they were combined with research designs, and their consequences for
generalizability and statistics. Approximately 89% of the research used nonprobability sampling procedures, both in survey and experimental research designs. The consequences of the use of
nonprobability sampling is discussed and suggestions are offered for increasing generalizability when nonprobability sampling is used in research.

Key Words: dress • sampling • student subjects • nonprobability sampling

Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, Vol. 13, No. 4, 262-272 (1995)
DOI: 10.1177/0887302X9501300407