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Fashion and Culture Dissertation Topics

Published by Owen Ingram at January 5th, 2023 , Revised On October 5, 2023

Introduction

The fashion trends reflect culture. The influence of culture on major styles and trends of the past can’t be understated. This is predominantly true in the world of women’s fashion . As the 20 th century kicked off, women started to fight for equal rights, reflected in their fashion trends.

Thus, early in the 20 th century, women were first seen wearing jeans. Fast forwarding, women of today’s world are now accustomed to smoking, which was previously seen as a strictly male habit. Cultures throughout the globe make use of clothing to make fashion statements.

Fashion trends further reflect the hierarchies, personal relationships, and social power structures within communities. Finding a good fashion dissertation topic can be a very daunting task, primarily because it should be intriguing and manageable in the given timeframe.

According to Diverse World Fashion (2014), “ Culture is a largely inclusive concept, and the fact of fashion reflecting culture implies some consideration of some major cultural changes. Technological advances— such as the Internet— have been immensely transformative in culture. ”

To help you get started with brainstorming for your fashion and culture topic ideas, we have developed a list of the latest topics that can be used for writing your fashion and culture dissertation.

PhD qualified writers of our team have developed these topics, so you can trust to use these topics for drafting your dissertation.

You may also want to start your dissertation by requesting a brief research proposal from our writers on any of these topics, which includes an introduction to the problem, research question , aim and objectives, literature review , along with the proposed methodology of research to be conducted. Let us know if you need any help in getting started.

Check our example dissertation to get an idea of how to structure your dissertation .

You can review step by step guide on how to write your dissertation here.

2022 Fashion and Culture D issertation Topics

Topic 1: an investigation into the impact of fashion choices on the cultural values of the consumers..

Research Aim: The research aims to conduct an investigation into the impact of fashion choices on impacting cultural values of the consumers.

Objectives:

To evaluate the factors impacting the fashion trends.
To analyse the relationship between fashion choices and the perceptions of the consumers.
To investigate how the fashion choices of the consumers impact their cultural values and social identity.

Topic 2: An investigation into the relevance of culture on social accountability and natural fabric selection by fashion consumers.

Research Aim: The research aims to investigate the relevance of culture on social accountability and natural fabric selection by fashion consumers.

To analyse the influence of culture on the fashion choices of the customers.
To evaluate the impact of social accountability in the fashion industry.
To investigate how social accountability and natural fabric selection are influenced by culture.

Topic 3: An assessment of the impact of global culture on the UK fashion trends.

Research Aim: The research aims to analyse the impact of global culture on UK fashion trends.

To analyse the impact of global culture on fashion and the perception of the consumers.
To determine the effect of culture on fashion trends and emerging choices of silhouettes.
To examine the ways in which the global culture has impacted the fashion trends in the UK.

Topic 4: The relationship of religion with the fashion choices of the consumers in the UK.

Research Aim: To analyse the relationship of religion with the fashion choices of the consumers in the UK.

To analyse the influence of religion on the choice of clothing and fashion sense of the consumers.
To evaluate the impact of religion on reinforcing tradition through fashion.
To investigate the impact of religion on the individuality and fashion choices of consumers in the UK.

Topic 5: An assessment of the evolution of the fashion trends and colour choices in the UK.

Research Aim: The research aims to conduct an assessment of the evolution of the fashion trends and colour choices in the UK

To analyse the evolution of fashion in the UK since the 1900s.
To understand the factors impacting the colour choices of apparel in the UK
To abases the factors impacting the evolution of fashion trends and colour choices in the UK.

Covid-19 Fashion and Culture Research Topics

Impacts of covid-19 on the fashion industry.

Research Aim: This study will highlight the impacts of coronavirus on the fashion industry

The role of the fashion industry during the Coronavirus pandemic

Research Aim: Covid-19 has disrupted all industries, including the fashion industry. All textile and luxury brands were paused during the global lockdown. This study will investigate how the fashion industry has contributed to combating the coronavirus pandemic.

Impacts of COVID-19 on people and their culture

Research Aim: The lockdown situation during the crisis of COVID-19 has affected the people and their culture. This study will address those issues and the role of the public in maintaining a safe environment.

Coronavirus and creative sector

Research Aim: This study will highlight the impacts of coronavirus on the creative sector, the planning, and innovations to overcome the consequences of COVID-19.

The future of fashion, cultural and creative sector after COVID-19

Research Aim: This study will predict the future of the fashion, cultural, and creative sectors after COVID-19 by highlighting the challenges, various methods to overcome those challenges.

Fashion and Culture Dissertation Topics for 2021

Topic 1: wool vs. synthetic wool.

Research Aim: This research aims to identify the difference between wool and synthetic wool

Topic 2: The growing popularity of natural fabrics

Research Aim: This research aims to address the growing popularity of the natural fabric

Topic 3: Fashion designing in demand

Research Aim: This research aims to evaluate the demand for fashion designing

Topic 4: Occasion Shopping Vs. Obsession with shopping

Research Aim: This research aims to evaluate occasion shopping and obsession with shopping

Topic 1: Analysing the role of fashion in re-shaping the western-cultural values: A case study of any western country.

Research Aim: Fashion has always played a significant role in everyone’s life. The research aims to analyse the role and importance of fashion in re-shaping and mould Western cultural values.

Topic 2: How modern fashion of the 21st century represents the political and cultural ideals of the current era

Research Aim: Since the last few decades, the fashion industry has played a prominent role in influencing cultural values. However, this research will be focusing on how the modern fashion of the 21st century represents the political and cultural ideals of the current era.

Topic 3: How has western culture influenced the living standards and preferences of Asian Consumers: A case study of Pakistan and India

Research Aim: The main aim of the research is to analyse and find out how western culture has influenced the living standards and buying preferences of Asian consumers. It is a well-researched argument that The Western world and its culture influence Asian consumers. Therefore, this research will be focusing on consumers of Pakistan and India and how their buy decisions might be affected by western culture.

Topic 4: Assessing the fashion trends of royal families around the world: Comparative analysis of the UK and Saudi Arabia

Research Aim: Royal families have always been subjected to classy fashion trends, creating an intense impression on the general public. The main focus of the research is to assess the fashion trends of royal families around the world with a specific focus on the UK and Saudi Arabia.

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Iconography Dissertation Topics

For centuries fashion has remained connected to the world of celebrities and music, reflecting ever-changing cultural trends. Iconography based dissertations may discuss the role of icons in fashion and art from a historical perspective.

The iconography subject primarily provides an insight into the celebrity culture to understand how they are used and portrayed to promote a certain fashion trend. Some interesting fashion and culture dissertation titles under this field of study are listed below:

The involvement of affluent female consumers in the fashion industry
Cultural modernity and fashion journalism in Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai
Alexander McQueen and the perception of fashion – A case study of the five fashion shows
The impact of fashion journalism on the current fashion industry
Mad for Madonna: The high and low fashions of Eighties pop culture
Lady Gaga : Glamorous fashions of the music industry
Selena Gomez : The teenage style icon for casual fashion
Eminently Eminem: Fashions of the rapping culture
James Dean and the Café Culture
Beyond the Pink: (Post) Youth Iconography in Cinema
Investigating the impact of celebrity culture on the fashion industry with a particular focus on females’ fashion clothing consumption
Do celebrity-endorsed advertisements in fashion magazines influence the purchase intentions of generation Y?

Also Read: Psychology Dissertation Topics for 2021

How Can ResearchProspect Help?

ResearchProspect writers can send several custom topic ideas to your email address. Once you have chosen a topic that suits your needs and interests, you can order for our dissertation outline service , which will include a brief introduction to the topic, research questions , literature review , methodology , expected results , and conclusion . The dissertation outline will enable you to review the quality of our work before placing the order for our full dissertation writing service !

History of Fashion Dissertation Topics

Charles Frederick Worth is the first known fashion designer who sewed his label into the garments, laying the foundation for the modern fashion industry, including individual designers, fashion houses and firms. Fashion history dissertations typically use pictorial analysis to draw specific comparisons between the fashion trends of different ages. There is a wide array of research topics to choose from in this very interesting and entertaining field of fashion and culture. Some fashion history dissertation topics are listed below to get you started without any further delays.

Fashion and Technology: Major fashion trends of the 21st century
The material culture of women’s accessories – Feminine display, race formation and middle-class performance (1825-1925)
Investigating American fashion trends through the decades: 1950-2010
Investigating British fashion trends through the decades: 1910-2010
Cultural transformation: Feminism in the American fashion industry between 1930 and 1980
Studying men’s fashion in Britain since 1800y
How English wedding dresses have evolved over the years – The history and origins
The impact of ethnic clothing on fashion trends in the UK
Fools and jesters through the ages
Women’s shoe fashion trends from 1700 to 2000
Fifties fashions on the streets today
Entering the era of liberalism: A closer look at the fashion trends of the 1920s

Fashion Design Dissertation Topics

Fashion designing can be described as the application of aesthetics and design to apparel and accessories. Both social and cultural factors influence fashion design which changes with place and time. In general, fashion designers’ responsibilities include but are not limited to designing apparel and accessories and anticipating varying consumer trends before the product is brought onto the market.

The primary aim of fashion designers is to design clothes that are functional and pleasing to the eye. Fashion design dissertations include research studies on the use of illegal material such as fur, regional styles and traditions, and the relationship between fashion design and leisure activities such as sports and theatre. Some interesting fashion design research questions can be explored in the following subjects:

How the ball gown has evolved over the decades
Fashion and Sports: The evolution of swimwear from early to modern
The influence of Shetland’s textile culture on fashion design
The modish Victorian challenge to design a bodice
The eta of manmade dress material: 1900-2000
Clothing of importance: The tuxedo and the suit since 1800
Investigating the history and evolution of the hat
Exploring the differences between UK urban and rural fashion design over the last two decades
Historical importance of fur with respect to clothing
Use of alternative materials for clothing

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Children’s Apparel Dissertation Topics

Any form of clothing designed specifically for children can be categorized as children’s apparel. It should be noted that children’s clothing is almost always more sensual and funky than adult clothing. In recent times, gender-based children’s clothing has attracted substantial attention in the world of fashion.

Nonetheless, children’s fashion is an extremely diverse and imaginative market that presents attractive business opportunities. Children’s fashion incorporates emblematic and symbolic imagery – especially relating to the fairytale, folk-lore, and hero-worship, more than any other type of Western clothing. Below are listed some key debates, ideas and discussions which would make enjoyable and challenging research topics :

Modern sociology of children and consumption
Investigating the clothing needs of children with disabilities
A qualitative study about fashion trends in Western children clothing
Moral Failure: How media portrays teen girls as a symbol of sex
School uniforms designs – Society’s attitudes and perceptions
Embracing ambiguity in the historiography of children’s dress
Sweet girls and cool boys – A qualitative study to understand the relationship between children’s clothing and gender
The origin of the motif
Chains, T-Shirts, and baggy trousers: The meaning of skateboard culture
Halloween: Fashion and the children’s imagination
Superheroes: Symbolism and representation in fantastic fashions

Fashion Entrepreneurship Dissertation Topics

A person who owns and possesses a fashion idea, venture or enterprise is a fashion entrepreneur. The activities of a fashion entrepreneur are confined within the boundaries of the fashion industry.

Creating knowledge-sharing platforms and addressing structural and social issues are some of the most important fashion entrepreneurship elements. Starting a new fashion business can be extremely daunting, especially if the economic climate is not suitable. There is a wide array of dissertation topics available under this particular field of study:

Analyzing fashion design entrepreneurship – Challenges and Opportunities
Factors affecting the performance of small and medium-sized enterprises in the UK fashion and culture industry – A case study of any five enterprises
The impact of digital marketing on the performance of small and medium scale fashion business organisations in the UK
Studying iconic women entrepreneurs engaged in the fashion industry
Fashion enterprise and entrepreneurship education – Guidance for potential fashion entrepreneurs
Developing a viable business plan for a fashion brand
The making of the female entrepreneur in the world of fashion
To study the failure and success factors affecting apparel businesses.
The importance of the role of trade fairs in the international fashion business
Social media marketing for luxury fashion brands
Contemporary issues in fashion marketing

Important Notes:

As a fashion and culture student looking to get good grades, it is essential to develop new ideas and experiment with existing fashion and culture theories – i.e., to add value and interest in your research topic.

Fashion and culture are vast and interrelated to many other academic disciplines like civil engineering , construction , law , and even healthcare . That is why it is imperative to create a fashion and culture dissertation topic that is articular, sound, and actually solves a practical problem that may be rampant in the field.

We can’t stress how important it is to develop a logical research topic based on your entire research. There are several significant downfalls to getting your topic wrong; your supervisor may not be interested in working on it, the topic has no academic creditability, the research may not make logical sense, there is a possibility that the study is not viable.

This impacts your time and efforts in writing your dissertation , as you may end up in the cycle of rejection at the initial stage of the dissertation. That is why we recommend reviewing existing research to develop a topic, taking advice from your supervisor, and even asking for help in this particular stage of your dissertation.

While developing a research topic, keeping our advice in mind will allow you to pick one of the best fashion and culture dissertation topics that fulfil your requirement of writing a research paper and add to the body of knowledge.

Therefore, it is recommended that when finalizing your dissertation topic, you read recently published literature to identify gaps in the research that you may help fill.

Remember- dissertation topics need to be unique, solve an identified problem, be logical, and be practically implemented. Please look at some of our sample fashion and culture dissertation topics to get an idea for your own dissertation.

How to Structure your Fashion and Culture Dissertation

A well-structured dissertation can help students to achieve a high overall academic grade.

A Title Page
Acknowledgements
Declaration
Abstract: A summary of the research completed
Table of Contents
Introduction : This chapter includes the project rationale, research background, key research aims and objectives, and the research problems. An outline of the structure of a dissertation can also be added to this chapter.
Literature Review : This chapter presents relevant theories and frameworks by analyzing published and unpublished literature on the chosen research topic to address research questions . The purpose is to highlight and discuss the selected research area’s relative weaknesses and strengths while identifying research gaps. Break down the topic and key terms that can positively impact your dissertation and your tutor.
Methodology: The data collection and analysis methods and techniques employed by the researcher are presented in the Methodology chapter, which usually includes research design, research philosophy, research limitations, code of conduct, ethical consideration, data collection methods and data analysis strategy .
Findings and Analysis: Findings of the research are analyzed in detail under the Findings and Analysis chapter. All key findings/results are outlined in this chapter without interpreting the data or drawing any conclusions. It can be useful to include graphs , charts and tables in this chapter to identify meaningful trends and relationships.
Discussion and Conclusion: The researcher presents his interpretation of the results in this chapter and states whether the research hypothesis has been verified or not. An essential aspect of this section is establishing the link between the results and evidence from the literature. Recommendations with regards to the implications of the findings and directions for the future may also be provided. Finally, a summary of the overall research, along with final judgments, opinions, and comments, must be included in the form of suggestions for improvement.
References: Make sure to complete this by your University’s requirements
Bibliography
Appendices: Any additional information, diagrams, and graphs used to complete the dissertation but not part of the dissertation should be included in the Appendices chapter. Essentially, the purpose is to expand the information/data.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How to find fashion and culture dissertation topic.

To discover a fashion and culture dissertation topic:

Analyze cultural influences on fashion.
Explore historical and contemporary trends.
Consider cultural appropriation debates.
Investigate sustainability in fashion.
Examine fashion’s role in identity.
Select a topic resonating with your passion and research scope.

100+ Fashion Dissertation Topics and Ideas – 2024

Table of Contents

Your love for designs and passion for stitching brought you to your dream fashion institute. But you had the least expectations that here you may also have to write a dissertation paper. Well, this is the reality, whether you like it or not.

Now, instead of procrastinating, it is better that you start working on the dissertation as soon as possible.

It is understandable if you have questions regarding the same keep reading this blog to the end. It intends to give you an overall idea of doing a fashion dissertation alongside highlighting the core areas of the dissertation and the most relevant topics for you.

So, let’s get started.

Fashion and Its Importance

Although fashion is fleeting and doesn’t significantly contribute to social progress, it does fulfil two essential needs for most people.

The first is the need for “acceptance.” People often make snap judgments about others based on their appearance, including their clothing, hairstyle, footwear, and behaviour in public. Individuals may face rejection if they do not possess desirable qualities that align with societal norms.

The second is “novelty”. Creating a new fashion trend or adopting an established one is always welcomed and valued by society. People with these traits are seen to be progressive, trendy, and up-to-date, whereas society labels others who do not adhere to these trends as orthodox.

This should explain why research is important in fashion.

Significance of Research in the Fashion Industry

The fashion industry might look very glittery afar, but it is not always about the glitz.

As a fashion designer, your primary focus should stay on how to make beautiful fashion trends and live up to modern fashion needs. But alongside, you must also ensure you have the technical knowledge of the market, and only then will you taste real success. So, a fashion dissertation will be the perfect medium of digging deep using data and analysis techniques.

Moreover, the fashion industry is constantly changing and getting better, it is important to constantly evaluate your competition. Therefore, you must constantly be on the lookout for fresh trends.

Your final semester research paper will help you better understand your area of interest by letting you know what you can do and what work has previously been done in the field.

On that note, let’s discuss the scope for fashion dissertations and research.

Evolution of Fashion

The late 1700s and the early 1800s saw the creation of some of the earliest examples of fashion design. For the French Queen Marie Antoinette, a dressmaker was employed. She ultimately decided to create her own store in Paris, where she sold her work to locals. The French Revolution caused her to flee to London, which jeopardised her fashion career.

The art of fashion involves designing various clothing items such as shirts, dresses, skirts, and trousers and selecting accessories, colour schemes, and materials to create a complete appearance. Fashion designers have different collections, but all follow a similar design philosophy. The ancient Egyptians and Romans were pioneers in perfecting their appearance and designing specialised clothing items to showcase their status, wealth, or profession. For instance, Roman ladies wore Pallas, shawls draped over their heads, while the men wore Togas, circular garments draped over their bodies.

Fashion design is thought to have started in the 19th century with a man named Charles Frederick Worth who sewed his own label sewed into apparel that he designed.

Worth decided on the course that fashion would soon take. Soon, the practice of designing began to grow, with artists creating sketches of garments for potential clients. These sketches are now created by designers who then create clothing samples for interested parties to try on. The affluent clientele ultimately decides if they want the item created based on these sketches.

Here’s a glimpse of the fashion through the years –

The Social and Cultural Impact of Fashion

Fashion plays a number of roles in society since it has integrated seamlessly into human civilisation. When a farmer is seen wearing skin-tight pants, it is clear that fashion has affected the village’s residents as well as the community at large. On the other side, if celebrities and other Haute couture designers are influenced by the ethnic clothing of a certain region, then society has influenced fashion and vice versa.

According to a recent study, more than 50% of the younger crowd closely follows the most recent fashion trends. They are also the ones that buy first and help a new fashion design become fashionable.

But everything has a positive and negative side. So does fashion. The same is discussed below –

Positive Impacts of Fashion

The ever-evolving fashion trends foster an environment of healthy competition that motivates the following generation of fashion designers and other related professionals to put in a lot of effort and produce innovative and relevant new ideas.
It opens up new work prospects for a large number of aspiring fashion students.
The wearer’s appearance is improved by the modern, fashionable formal attire, which also gives the wearer the assurance needed to perform well, particularly in an interview.
An average individual might become extraordinary thanks to the latest fashion trend.
In order to avoid being unrecognised, it provides the wearer with identification.
Last but not least, it offers a chance to meld many cultures and traditions.

Negative Impacts of Fashion

Traditional design and accompanying culture are vanishing as a result of an obsessive focus on the latest fashion trends.
The Western fashion culture has a far greater impact on the younger generations.
The latest fashion trends, which are largely influenced by Western and Bollywood culture, cause confusion in the minds of the younger generations, leading to a lot of them engaging in antisocial behaviour.
These new fashion trends also impact younger generations’ psychology; hence, if they do not adopt them, it negatively impacts their minds and increases their likelihood of developing psychological problems.

Ethical and Sustainable Considerations in Fashion

Ethical and sustainable fashion is a method of sourcing, manufacturing, and designing clothing that focuses on providing benefits to the industry and society while minimising environmental harm. Ethical and sustainable fashion begins in cotton fields and ends in the consumer’s wardrobe.

Sustainability is no longer simply a theory; it is a way to conduct business. Ecological and ethical fashion forerunners include companies like NOIR and Stella McCartney. Nowadays, a lot of businesses have adopted and incorporated the idea of sustainability. These businesses are aware that integrating issues related to society and the environment into their operations will benefit them in the long run.

Today, blogs, ethical fashion forums, and fashion shows are all centred on the idea of sustainable fashion. Profits and business are both factors in going green. It’s crucial for companies that promote sustainable and ethical fashion to honour their pledge. By doing so, they may uphold the business’s ethical standards and gain the confidence of the customer.

Explore Our Trendy Dissertation Topics to Write a Fashion Thesis with Flair

Whether you want to craft a flawless paper on the evolution of luxury brands or the cultural importance of streetwear, choosing the right topic is important. To make things easier, you can take a look at our collection to choose fashion dissertation topics that resonate with your passion and scholarly pursuits effectively.

Check This Fashion Dissertation Example

Fashion and Technology

Technological advancements in both design and manufacturing have made it possible to develop new materials and production methods. This has led to innovative fashion designs and the use of more environmentally friendly materials. Social media and online shopping have completely transformed the way consumers find and buy clothing. Virtual try-on technology has changed the way they choose what to buy. High street retail is no longer dominating the shopping process, and this shift may be irreversible. Fashion companies now rely on social media channels to promote their products and engage with customers.

Advancement of technology has brought in the following innovations in the fashion industry –

Clothing and accessories made using 3D printing now feature detailed and complicated designs that weren’t possible to make with conventional production techniques.
Thanks to technology, it is now possible to make biodegradable materials, which can be utilised to make more environmentally friendly and long-lasting clothing and accessories.
With the help of technology, one can now create recycled materials such as recovered polyester and repurposed plastic. These materials can be used to produce eco-friendly clothing and accessories.
With the ability to make personalised prints on cloth, digital printing enables designers to produce distinctive and striking designs.

Fashion and Globalisation

Globalisation has allowed consumers in Western countries to access a wide range of clothing options from large retailers who can easily update their inventory, negotiate international trade agreements, and easily distribute products worldwide. As a result, consumers tend to be more interested in corporate brands such as Nike, Victoria’s Secret, or Abercrombie & Fitch rather than the actual clothing itself. These brands use extravagant, pervasive, and hyper-visible marketing on high-tech electronic media to spread images of sex appeal, athletic prowess, coolness, or carefree happiness that consumers want to buy. However, the impact of globalisation on fashion creation is not as obvious.

Fashion images spread rapidly across the world through various media channels such as magazines, music videos, movies, the internet, and television, creating a global style that surpasses national and cultural borders. Blue jeans, T-shirts, sports shoes, and baseball caps are now worn by people all over the world, from Manhattan to African villages. The fashion systems of Asia, Africa, and the West all borrow stylistic and textile elements from each other. In rich countries, large malls offer a wide range of these fashion styles to customers of all ages, genders, races, careers, and subcultures, resembling modern global bazaars.

Fashion and Body Positivity

One of the biggest protests against the fashion industry’s lack of diversity and favourable self-images is the body positivity movement. The body positivity movement opposes how society promotes unattainable beauty standards and upholds the notion that all people should have a positive body image. The movement promotes the portrayal of all ethnicities, genders, sizes, and physical abilities.

The majority of models used by the fashion industry to promote new collections in publications, on TV and other media, and on catwalks have been young, female, and of the white, slender, and feminine kind. Sample-sized clothing in the fashion industry is normally between a size 0 and 4, which is not indicative of the regular body type. People began rebelling when studies and numbers began to emerge, demonstrating how people were being adversely affected by all of this.

The movement for body positivity is not the first to call for accepting all body forms. One of the earliest of its kind, the Victorian Dress Reform Movement, which took place between the 1850s and the 1890s, sought to eliminate the practice of forcing women to alter their bodies through the use of corsets. Women also pushed for the right to wear trousers at this time.

But today, the positivity movement is at its peak. Around the globe, models are working in the fashion industry of all shapes, sizes, and colours. Dresses are being made to suit all body types. The idea is to make everybody feel included. The most amazing fact is that today influencers are making a career out of it.

E-commerce and the Fashion Industry

The fashion industry is a major contributor to the global economy and has seen significant growth through eCommerce. With more companies going digital each day, competition in niche sectors is on the rise. This expansion surprises many, as the industry’s growth and sales have been impressive. The retail industry’s top priorities are exploring trends to boost sales and developing lead-generation strategies.

The fashion industry is experiencing major changes due to factors such as globalisation, technological advancements, and shifts in consumer behaviour. This article analyses relevant data and factors that will greatly affect the eCommerce fashion industry in 2022 and beyond to provide insight into its current and future state.

Fashion eCommerce pertains to the buying and selling of clothing and accessories through online platforms. This has provided a means of livelihood and has elevated the fashion industry among sellers, designers, producers, and merchants. The convenience and benefits of eCommerce have made it popular among retailers and consumers, especially during times of lockdown due to the pandemic.

The areas discussed above are the most relevant research areas in the field of fashion. You can also go for something else, like material selection for fashion, but the only advice for you is to make sure whichever area you choose is relevant enough to the industry’s needs.

The Most Relevant Fashion Dissertation Topic.

35 interesting fashion dissertation topics.

Fashion trends’ development in the 20th and 21st centuries.
The effect of social media on marketing tactics in the fashion business.
Influencers and fashion bloggers’ impact on consumer behaviour.
The relevance of traditional dress in non-western cultures.
The moral implications of rapid fashion and its environmental effects.
The origins of haute couture and how it influenced modern fashion.
How did the fashion scene of the 1990s start?
What kind of fashion sense was exhibited by the youth of the 1960s?
Are leather clothes progressively disappearing from the scene?
What is the evolution of leather jackets’ history?
Do animals play a significant role in the fashion industry? How far is it acceptable?
How did ties and bow ties come into being?
The psychology of cross-dressing: What is causing such high levels of transgender activity in contemporary society?
During the Cold War, opulent and royal fashions were popular.
Describe the impact of the media on what individuals dress.
What connection exists between fine art and expensive clothing?
What effect is the LGBTQ community having on the modern fashion industry?
How music has inspired Fenny Beauty’s effective operation is the subject of an icon case study.
How much of an impact do celebrities have on fashion trends: Beyoncé as a case study
Exceptional fashion brands’ Effects on prevailing fashion trends
Looking at whether the entry of designer goods in the fashion market has made them more affordable or if there is a market leak.
The development of high-ankle boots and leather
Lady Diana’s dress choice and its impact on society at the time
How is the modern smartphone influencing young fashion?
Is Justin Bieber the newest teen superstar and youth fashion icon?
Which old and new films have had a significant impact on society’s sense of style?
The impact of haute fashion on street style.
The psychology of fashion choices made by consumers.
Celebrity endorsements function in the fashion industry.
Political events’ effects on fashion trends.
Nostalgia’s impact on current fashion trends.
The connection between art and fashion.
Social movements’ effects on current fashion trends.
The development of menswear.
The portrayal of diversity in media and advertising for fashion.
The part gender plays in the fashion world and how it affects consumer behaviour.

Fashion and Culture Dissertation Topics for 2024

How is fashion reshaping western cultural values? Could you share your thoughts on it?
What is the reason for the increasing demand for natural fabric in 2021?
Impact of COVID-19 on the fashion industry
Difference between occasional shopping and obsession with shopping.
Comparative analysis of the fashion of royal families around the world.
The role of the fashion industry during coronavirus pandemic
The strong influence of western culture on political and cultural ideas of the current era
Influence of traditional wears on a society
Determine the relationship between culture, fashion and identity
Influence of western fashion on people across the globe
Share a significant connection between fashion and religion.
Crossover trends in the fashion industry
Influence of celebrations on the fashion industry
Impact of ethnic clothing on fashion trends in the UK and USA.
Tracing the social and cultural history of fashion to examine the fashion of modernity n the 21st century
Analyzing the clothing of reputable fashion writers
How eastern countries are adopting western fashion trends
The evolution of fashion trends in Eastern countries
Influence of western culture on the preferences and living standards of Asian consumers
Fashion trend introduces by the members of famous brands The Beatles.

Iconography Dissertation Topics

Influence of celebrity culture on high street fashion
The unique look of the Sixties and Beatle Mania
The rise of the sneaker
The role of plastic surgery play in the formation of an icon
List of celebrities as fashion icons
James Dean and the café culture
Personal signature looks of iconic fashion models
Punk, The Sex Pistols and Westwood
Why Kylie Minogues is known to have the image of the pop princess
Mad for Madonna: The high and low fashions of eighties pop culture
Fashion revolution bought by Audrey Hepburn in the society
Do you find Justin Bieber is the fashion youth for the teenagers
Evolution of ball gown in the society
The little black dress of Audrey Hepburn
Elizabeth Taylor: Queen of diamonds
Iconic feminine dress of Grace Kelly
Katherine Hepburn: The first lady of princess
Laurel Bacall’s seductiveness in pencil skirts, pleated trousers, blazers and silk blouses
Madonna: Costume culture
Marilyn Monroe: The Seven year Itch look

Fashion Design Dissertation Topics

The historical importance of fur in the fashion industry
Influence of digital marketing tools on the modern fashion world
Tuxedo and the suite since 1980
The evolution of swimwear from early to modern wear
The evolution of ball gown from the decades
Use of alternative materials for clothing
The modish Victorian challenge to design a bodice
Check Vs. Plaid
Bright street style trends
Textile and apparel resting
The emergence of T-shorts
Nylon- Most ravishing fashion innovation
The origin of maxi and mini skirts
Why do you think leather garments are going out of existence?
The concept of school dresses and designing
Evolution of beach-wear
How do you think Sari came into existence
Investigate the decline of the tie
How is formal wear becoming less prevalent in workplaces?
The origin of the waistcoat

Children’s Apparel Dissertation Topics

Twinning or mini-me trends
Unisex trends
Floral prints
Asymmetrical cut dresses
The role of a smartphone with designing fashion trends among children
Academic dress in the education arena
The demand of hair accessories like hair tiaras, hairpins, hair bands for children
Street style
Warm looks with embroidery
Impact of COVID-19 on children’s apparel
Ocean and sea themes for children’s apparel
Preference for easy movement, convenience and comfort in children’s apparel
Down Syndrome Toddlers: New face of UK fashion brand
Do you think personalised baby clothing is making its way to the forefront in the market?
Demand for organic clothing for young ones
Why are people shifting from fast fashion to children’s wear?
The obsession of trying adult look in children’s fashion wear
Boho-chic swimming costumes for the summer season
The origin of the motif

Fashion Entrepreneurship Dissertation Topics

State the factors affecting the performance of small and medium-sized enterprises in the culture industry and UK fashion. Explain it with a case study of any five enterprises.
Analyse iconic women entrepreneurs in the fashion industry
Developing a viable business plan for a fashion board
Social media marketing is the most effective tool for luxury fashion brands.
Fashion marketing and its contemporary issues
Describe the making of a female entrepreneur in the world of fashion
Challenges and opportunities of fashion design entrepreneurship
The role of trade fairs in the international fashion business
Discuss the challenges or issues faced by entrepreneurs in the fashion industry
The role of women in today’s fashion trends
Discuss the success and failure factors that are affecting the apparel business
Fashion entrepreneurship education: A guide on potential fashion entrepreneurs
The role of entrepreneurship in the fashion industry
Fashion design entrepreneurship: Necessary skills and solution for Creating a business
How clothes are becoming a way of showing the class of a person
Popular fashion trends followed by top entrepreneurs
What factors to consider for opening a new fashion business in the US or UK?
Influence of digital marketing tools on the growth of small businesses
Entering the era of liberalism: A closer look at the fashion trends of 1920s
Contribution of fashion entrepreneurship to the economic growth of the country

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Culture and Fashion Dissertation Topics

The relationship between culture and fashion is intrinsic and dynamic. Cultures across the world use clothing to make statements on the nature of power relations, personal relationships, and hierarchies within communities. The links are diverse and often complex, involving sociological and psychological research.

If you are interested in writing your dissertation on culture and fashion, it’s important to find a good topic that reflects these concerns while allowing room to focus on specific research questions.

Your chosen topic must also reflect your own interests and concerns, as well as the trends of contemporary research. We’ve come up with some interesting, original yet manageable culture and fashion dissertation topics focusing on a variety of key areas:

Iconography

Co-creation in the fashion industry, history of fashion dissertation topics, clothing, leisure and place, children’s clothing, sex, body, and presentation, material and designs, impact of covid-19 on the creative industries.

For centuries fashion has been identified as reflecting changing cultural trends and is especially relevant to the high-profile world of music and celebrity culture. What are icons? Why do we need icons in today’s society? Who creates icons? Do icons have any moral responsibilities? These are the sorts of questions raised during the study of celebrities and fashion. Dynamic and particularly relevant to young people’s culture, this subject offers a closer look at the celebrity culture and how it is used and portrayed in the fashion world and advertising media in general.

A window into another world: Understanding the fashion icon.
Keeping up with the Kardashians? Mapping the influence of the Kardashians on the fashion sector.
Royal influence: Kate Middleton as a contemporary style icon.
Imagining Monroe: A retrospective encounter with one of the world’s most fashionable women.
Hepburn, De Givenchy and Haute Couture.
James Dean and the Café Culture.
Fashioning the Elite: What the life-long friendship between Hubert de Givenchy and Audrey Hepburn brought to the fashion world.
Mad for Madonna: The high and low fashions of Eighties pop culture.
If looks could kill: Kylie Minogue and the image of the pop princess.
Fashioning an Idol: Boy band culture and teenage clothing.
Eminently Eminem: Fashions of the rapping culture.
Glitter, glam, and an expanding waistline: What Elvis brought to the fashion world.
Beatle Mania and the Sixties look.
Westwood, Punk, and The Sex Pistols.
What celebrity culture has done for high street fashion.
‘Pride and Prejudice’: how Austen still captures the imaginations of designers today.
Iconic fashion models and their personal signature looks.
Celebrities as fashion icons.
The rise of the sneaker.
Can women over 70 still be fashion icons?
What part does plastic surgery play in the formation of an icon?
Gender fluidity: Exploring the significance of androgenous style icons.

In recent years, it has become more common for consumers to play a ‘co-creative’ role in the development of fashion lines. Take, for example, A Way to Mars – a fashion brand that encourage designers (whether qualified or novice) to share their designs. and the brand chooses to collaborate with the best submissions. The benefit to the brand is that they are able to access a range of rich (often culturally-informed) ideas from designers throughout the world. That said, you might choose to focus your dissertation on co-creation in the fashion industry.

‘None of us are as strong as all of us’: co-creation in the fashion industry.
Co-creation through social media: A case-study of the fashion industry.
Co-creation and SME fashion brands: What is the role of co-creators’ culture?
Zara and customer co-creation: A case study.
Co-creation and brand equity: An exploration of luxury brands.
Global/cross-national collaborations in the fashion industry.
To what extent has digital technology facilitated co-creation in the global fashion industry?
Upcycling garments: A strategy for tackling fast-fashion?
Cross-disciplinary collaborations: When science meets fashion.
Analysing the ‘culture of co-creation’ in the fashion industry: Is it the future?
Fashion co-creation in the circular economy.

Fashion history has the largest body of research from which to draw from in writing a dissertation. Pictorial analyses are useful to make specific comparisons between certain aspects of clothing that has changed over the years and those that have stayed remained relatively the same. This subject is a rich and interesting field of research, with an array of historical research to choose from. Some of the more obscure, rare books on fashion through the ages and cultures can be particularly useful. It is important to remember that contemporary fashions bear obvious and subtle links to fashions throughout the ages, and between different cultures and that most items – such as the hat, jacket, and shoe – have remained relatively unchanged in shape, concept and function for a very long time. It can also be linked to economics and commercialism, reflecting financial climates by responding with various styles of clothing.

A sense of Englishness: British fashion through the ages.
Mods and Rockers and the age of the teenage rebel.
Age of Liberalism: 1920’s fashions.
Fashions of the Second World War in America and the UK.
Fifties street fashion in the UK and America.
The Sixties: Flowers, flares, and bells.
A discussion of Seventies fashion icons and what they brought to the fashion world.
How Eighties fashions represented political and cultural ideals of the time.
Young people’s clothing in the Nineties.
Chasing an elusive dream? Fashions of the future.
Royal clothing and the different identities of monarchs across the World.
‘The Cobbler and the Tailor’: Forgotten trades.
A chronological study of men’s fashion since 1700.
What we still love about Dickensian fashion.
Material marriages: The origins and history of the English wedding dress.
The symbolic aspects of Greco-Roman fashions.
Ethnic clothing in London; markets and bazaars.
How important was fashion to the Tudors and Stuarts?
A history of peasant costume.
Fools and jesters through the ages.
A history of women’s shoes.
Retro is all the rage: A discussion of the influences of retro fashions on today’s fashion industry.
The advent of Primark: Affordable fashion.
The British Royal Family as leaders of fashion today.
How children’s wear has changed over the last two decades.
Twenty-First Century wedding clothing for ‘alternative’ couples.
Beach-wear and its evolution.
The current crisis in the fashion industry and possible solutions.
Androgyny: its own statement in the fashion industry.
Goths and gothic styles in fashion.
Steam punk, its rise and relevance.
The application of jewellery in the haute couture fashion industry.

Clothing choices are often a reflection of where we are from, current social norms and choice of leisure activities. As such, study of these issues is interesting and relevant. An exploration of contemporary styles is also interesting in this context as it has the capacity to both diversify and limit traditional looks. For example, fur has gone out of fashion to the extent of being illegal, while tartans remain ever as fashionable as they always have been. Regional styles are interesting to study as they can be effectively compared across the country, e.g.: Rural/Urban wear. Fashion has been intrinsically connected to leisure for centuries – especially through mediums such as the theatre and sports. Within this relationship exists a complex and powerful history of evolving beliefs and cultural change. Why do we wear certain items of clothing in certain places or for certain activities? What would happen if we didn’t? Why do we need to conform? These are the sorts of questions and ideas explored in the following topics:

The rise of Athleisure since COVID-19.
The rise and rise of vegan leather.
Labelling and branding: The power of representation.
The power of marketing in the contemporary fashion world.
Clothes for clubbers: The use of alternative materials.
Sustainable footwear: Exploring the attitude-behaviour gap.
Tartans today: How colours represent ideas.
Tracing the history of fur in fashion.
Hunting wear: Stigmas and tradition.
Shakespearian theatre and the aesthetic image: how Shakespearian productions reflect contemporary fashion trends.
Translating Tolkien: Costume from book to screen.
A history of the hat.
Hats and the imagination: Magicians, witches and Ascot.
Changing Times: The closing divide between rural and urban fashions over the last century.
Wigs, rings, and tails: Symbols of power since 1700.
Clothing of importance: The tuxedo and the suit since 1800.
Sci-Fi culture and fashion.
Water and fashion: Swimwear early to contemporary.
The evolution of the ball gown.
The uniform: the evolution and change of UK school uniforms over the last one hundred years.
The influence of celebrities on fashion: an exploration of celebrity-endorsed fashion lines.
The purpose of the heel? A historical review of high-heeled shoes in fashion.

Children’s fashion is an incredibly imaginative and diverse market that caters for all segments of the market. On the more affordable end of the scale, second-hand clothing shops are very popular as children outgrow clothes so readily that high quality, and even new items can be bought at low prices. At the other end of the scale, designer children’s clothing can be extremely expensive and affords a competitive market. More than any other types of Western clothing, children’s fashion incorporates emblematic and symbolic imagery – especially relating to fairy tale, folklore and hero worship. Furthermore, children’s clothing has attracted some controversy in recent years due to its connection to debates about gender and sexuality. Beneath are listed some key debates, ideas and discussions which would make enjoyable and challenging fashion dissertation topics:

The essence of the fairy tale: Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and the fashionable imagination.
What is too short? A critical analysis of debates surrounding promiscuity and children’s clothing.
Superheroes: Symbolism and representation in fantastic fashions.
Halloween: Fashion and the children’s’ imagination.
Baby Boom: Post-war culture and baby fashion.
“Everyone else is doing it so why can’t we?” An Investigation into the effects of fashion advertising on children.
Returning to nature: The use of natural-world emblems and symbols in contemporary fashion.
‘All the colours of the rainbow’: Exploring why colour matters to fashion.
The origin of the motif in children’s fashion.
Chains, T-Shirts, and baggy trousers: The meaning of skateboard culture in children’s fashion.
Alice In Wonderland: The decline of the dress in girl’s fashion.
Fairies and Pixies: Casting a spell on the creative imagination.
Gender neutral clothing for children: Is it necessary?
“Blue is for boys, pink is for girls”: Gender stereotyping in children’s fashion.
Is children’s fashion a reflection of present social values? Studying children’s fashion from the Victorian era to the present day.

These topics look at how sex and the human body are explored in fashion. The image of the body is pivotal to our understanding of the fashion world. This area of research is one of the most popular and contemporary fashion dissertation topics due to the ‘cutting edge’ nature of the topics under discussion. Often involving the complex interplay between perception of self and others, our understanding of image is closely associated with the media. Powerful presentation is vital to the appreciation of the aesthetic image, and the media has had a very important role to play in promoting and shaping body image over the last fifty years. This is a challenging and interesting area to study, and offers the potential to use a wide range of research methods, such as interview and ethnographic research. Below are a list of fashion dissertation topics that explore these issues:

The origins of power dressing.
Gender representation in men and women’s fashions since the Fifties.
Adoration and adornment: A critical analysis of the meaning of body art and piercing in western societies.
The place of fetish wears in contemporary fashion.
Fashion and religion: An inquiry into the debates surrounding acceptable dress.
Hair and makeup: Do we really need it?
Cross-dressing since the Victorians.
Reality and the subversive: The use of mannequins and models since the Sixties.
The importance of presentation: Catwalks, lights and cameras.
Sex, gender and the body in the media.
Power, Status, Ambition: An analysis of what clothing represents.
Exploring the relationship between nudists and fashion.
The habit of a lifetime: Dressing monks and nuns through the ages.
To what extent is contemporary fashion about looking good naked?
Have transgender models influenced popular fashion design?
Plus-size fashion: a reflection of the obesity epidemic.
Gender neutral clothing: here to stay?

Design is an integral area of study in culture and fashion as it is constantly subject to change reflecting current tastes, economic climates and cultural trends. Some designs and materials – such as denim jeans – have a durable marketability, often reflecting retro trends, whereas public service wear – such as flame-retardant clothing for firemen – often has to comply with current developments in technology regarding health and safety. The following list is especially useful for students looking for less abstract, more tangible fashion dissertation topics:

A history of the undergarment.
PVC: uses and connotations.
Fashion and manmade materials.
The wool trade and its contribution to western fashion.
The history and importance of the bodice.
The eras of the mini and maxi skirt.
Public service wear, the influence of health and safety and the growth of gender changing roles.
Materials that matter: an analysis of the changing uses of materials since the 19th Century.
Wool and its uses: from prehistoric times up until today.
The dawn of nylon and what it meant for Fifties fashion.
Is it Fair-trading? Cotton and hemp production and its place in British shops.
Current debates surrounding the morality and popularity of natural fabrics such as leather and cotton.
Just what is it about shoes? An ethnographic study into women’s and men’s love of shoes.
Accessories and their statements. How different materials have affected the styles of accessories.
The fascination of the sari. The material designs and adaptations over the years.
Distressed fashion, torn clothing from 1990’s to the present day, its message.
Horse racing and hats: where’s the fashion?

According to OECD, cultural and creative industries (including fashion) were some of the worst affected by the COVID-19 crisis. It will be important for creative students to evaluate the impacts of COVID, and also consider how the creative industries are likely to evolve in the future. Many industries became more innovative and resilient as a result of COVID, whereas others struggled to keep their heads above water. What is the case for the creative industries?

How did digital innovations support the creative industries during the pandemic?
Return of the museum? A plan for resilience for 2021-2025.
Culture, education, and health: New cross-overs as a result of the COVID pandemic.
The creative recovery of cities and regions post-COVID-19 .
Why were the creative industries so negatively impacted by COVID compared to many other sectors? An in-depth analysis.
COVID-19 and the fast-fashion industry – a wakeup call?
COVID-19 and creativity: The rise of loungewear and activewear.
Exploring fashion students’ attitudes towards career prospects post COVID-19.
Graffiti and protest during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Fashion Dissertation Topics: 25+ Ideas and Examples

by Antony W

April 21, 2022

Culture and fashion intersect to a great degree, and this is a great area to study and write a dissertation on. So if you’re interested in examining the relationship between culture and fashion and the role the two play in the human life, you should explore the best fashion dissertation topics, identify the topic idea that interests you, and present your research in your dissertation project.

The most important rule when choosing a dissertation topic in culture and fashion is to focus on a subject that reflects your concerns and interest. It also helps to ensure that the topic you choose merges well into the current trends and focuses on key areas.

It’s important to note that the link between fashion and culture is complex and dynamic. Given that diversity, you will need to implement sociological and psychological research.

In this dissertation topics series, we look at some examples of topics that are worth looking at in the culture-fashion field.

Fashion Dissertation Topics

We’ve divided the following sections into categories to make it easy for you to identify the area you would find interesting to explore in your work.

Iconography Topics for Dissertation Research

Trying to keep up with the Kardashians: The Kardashians’ effect on the fashion industry is being tracked
Imagining Monroe: A look back at one of the world’s most stylish ladies
Fashioning the Elite: What Hubert de Givenchy and Audrey Hepburn’s lifelong friendship contributed to the fashion industry
‘Pride and Prejudice’: how Austen continues to captivate designers’ minds today.
What Elvis gave to the fashion world: glitz, glam, and an increasing girth.
Gender fluidity: Investigating the importance of androgynous fashion icons
If appearances could kill: Kylie Minogue and the pop princess image.

Co-creation in the Fashion Industry

To what degree has digital technology aided in the global fashion industry’s co-creation?
Is the ‘culture of co-creation’ in the fashion industry the way of the future?
‘None of us are as strong as all of us,’ says the fashion industry on co-creation.
Co-creation via social media: A fashion industry case study
What is the function of co-creators’ culture in SME fashion brands?

History of Fashion Dissertation Topics

A discussion of 1970s fashion icons and what they contributed to the fashion industry
How fashion in the 1980s reflected political and cultural beliefs of the period.
Royal attire and the many identities of rulers across the world
Material marriages: The origins and evolution of the English wedding gown
The effect of vintage clothes on today’s fashion business is discussed in this article.

Fashion Topics on Clothing, Leisure and Place

Shakespearean theatre and the aesthetic image: how Shakespearean plays influence current fashion trends
Changing Times: The closure of the rural-urban fashion divide during the previous century
The uniform: the history and transformation of school uniforms in the United Kingdom during the last century
Celebrity fashion influence: an examination of celebrity-endorsed design lines
What is the function of the heel? A look back at the history of high-heeled shoes in fashion

Children’s Clothing Fashion Dissertation Topics

Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and the trendy imagination are the essence of the fairy tale.
A critical examination of the controversies around promiscuity and children’s clothes
T-shirts, chains, and baggy pants: In children’s fashion, the meaning of skateboard culture
Is children’s dress representative of current societal values? Children’s clothes from the Victorian era to the current day is being studied.
Return to nature: The incorporation of natural-world emblems and symbols into modern fashion.
“If everyone else can do it, why can’t we?” An examination of the impact of fashion advertisement on children

Dissertation Topics on Sex, Body, and Presentation in Fashion

Adoration and adornment: A critical examination of the significance of body art and piercing in Western civilizations
Fashion and religion: An investigation into the issues about appropriate dress
The real and the subversive: Mannequins and models have been used since the 1960s.
Dressing monks and nuns through the centuries is a lifelong practice.
To what extent is modern fashion concerned with appearing nice naked?
Have transgender models had an impact on mainstream fashion design?

Material and Designs Fashion Dissertation Topics

The impact of health and safety, as well as the expansion of gender shifting roles, are all factors to consider when it comes to public service attire.
Materials that matter: an examination of the shifting usage of materials during the nineteenth century
The morality and appeal of natural textiles such as leather and cotton are currently being debated.
Statements made by accessories: How diverse materials have influenced accessory styles.
From the 1990s to the present, distressed fashion and damaged garments have been popular.

COVID-19 Impact on Creative Industries

What role did digital advancements play in assisting the creative sectors throughout the pandemic?
Examine new crossovers in culture, education, and health resulting from the COVID epidemic.
Why did COVID have such a detrimental impact on the creative industries compared to many other sectors?
Investigate students’ perspectives on employment opportunities in the fashion industry following COVID-19.

Fashion Entrepreneurship Dissertation Topics

Describe the variables influencing the performance of small and medium-sized firms in the cultural and fashion industries in the United Kingdom.
Discuss the obstacles or concerns that fashion entrepreneurs encounter.
Fashion design entrepreneurship: Required skills and a solution Starting a business
Contribution of fashion entrepreneurship on the country’s economic growth
Education in fashion entrepreneurship: A handbook for aspiring fashion entrepreneurs
What criteria should you consider before starting a new fashion firm in the United States or the United Kingdom?
For luxury fashion firms, social media marketing is the most successful method.

Good Fashion Dissertation Topics

The effect of fashion on the young generation as a result of celebrity lives and movies they watch
What is the difference between a fashion brand’s brand image and brand identity, and how does it benefit entrepreneurs in today’s market?
Analysis and examination of the history of the hat and how it has evolved over the ages with new designs
Since the early 1800s, a chronological examination and study of men and women’s fashion has been conducted
Nuns’ and monks’ clothes and style during the last few decades
In today’s society, does luxury apparel necessitate good social media marketing?
What films, both past and present, have had a significant effect on society in terms of fashion?

About the author

Antony W is a professional writer and coach at Help for Assessment. He spends countless hours every day researching and writing great content filled with expert advice on how to write engaging essays, research papers, and assignments.

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100+ Fashion Dissertation Topics and Ideas – Free Consultation

Published by Alvin Nicolas at November 29th, 2022 , Revised On February 2, 2024

Fashion is an expression of style and dress that changes according to region and time. Unlike Muslim countries, where women must cover their faces with a Naqab, Chador, Burqa or a Hijab, Western women can wear jeans, tops and skirts as a fashion statement. Similarly, women in Japan wear Kimonos, which have long sleeves and reach from the shoulders all the way down to one’s heels.

The field of fashion and the industry that runs it could be an exciting area of research for many fashion students because of how fashion and culture depict people’s different aesthetic preferences around the globe.

Students who choose a fashion dissertation topic must have up-to-date knowledge and understanding of the trending fashion styles to make a solid impression on the readers.

To write an engaging fashion dissertation, fashion design students must keep a close eye on the latest developments and changes in the fashion industry.

You will need to gather all the relevant data and break it into specific, focused, and clear titles that match your research interests and preferences.

Choosing a compelling topic for a fashion dissertation will enable you to make a first good impression on the readers. You are at significant risk of underperforming your research if your chosen topic needs to be clarified and better defined.

Therefore, pick a topic you are passionate about and make a valuable academic contribution. If you have been looking for a unique and manageable fashion dissertation title, you have come to the right place.

Our fashion dissertation writing experts have compiled a list of the best topics to give you the head start you need.

This article lists 100 fashion dissertation topics to assist you in making a choice that will attract your examining committee. Here you go;

Other Dissertation Links: Nursing Dissertation Topics | Accounting Dissertation Topics | Project Management Dissertation Topics | Environmental Dissertation Topics

Topics for Dissertation on Fashion Entrepreneurship

Variables that influence the performance of small and medium-sized enterprises in the UK fashion and culture sector. Explain with a case study of any five companies.
The most successful marketing strategy for luxury fashion businesses is social media marketing – A critical investigation.
Describe the steps a woman takes to become an entrepreneur in the fashion industry.
Explain the difficulties or problems faced by entrepreneurs in the fashion industry.
Discuss the elements that determine the success and failure of the apparel industry.
What aspects should a new fashion business in the US or UK consider?
To what extent has co-creation in the global fashion industry been supported by digital technology?
What is the future of the “culture of co-creation” in the fashion industry?
What is the function of the culture of co-creation in small and medium fashion brands that engage in co-creation?
An exploration of premium brand co-creation and brand equity.
Collaborations between nations and across borders in the fashion sector.
Examining the relationship between consumer behaviour and organisational sustainability reputation: The case of the UK’s luxury fashion industry.
How has the development of digital marketing benefited the global fashion industry is discussed?
The role of digital media and entrepreneurship in developing new-age fashion.
Fashion industry case study: Analysing the factors affecting employee engagement and how it affects organisational outcomes.

Fashion and Culture Dissertation Topics

How are western cultural values changing through fashion? Could you explain your thoughts on this?
What is the cause of the increased demand for natural fabrics in 2022?
There is a difference between occasional and compulsive shopping.
A comparison of the wardrobe of royal families from other countries.
Fashion’s contribution to the coronavirus epidemic.
An exploration of the meaning of body piercings and tattoos in Western societies.
The habit of a lifetime: The dress of nuns and monks throughout history.
Have transgender models influenced the popular fashion industry?
Exploring the link between fashion and nudists.
The representation of gender in men’s and women’s fashion since the 1950s.
How eastern countries are adopting western fashion.
The changing fashion trends in eastern countries.
Examining fashion’s contribution to cultural sustainability.
The choices and standard of living of Asian consumers are under the influence of Western culture.
Presented by representatives of well-known brands, Those Fab Four.
Examining how public aesthetics, cultural connotations, and artistic aesthetics influence clothing design.
Examining the influence of western fashion on developing Asia.
How fashion influences students’ daily lives and helps them develop positive attitudes.
Modernist political and cultural beliefs are heavily influenced by Western civilization.
Examine the fashion of modernity in the twenty-first century by tracing fashion’s social and cultural history.
Determining the link between identity, culture, and fashion.
Young people’s exposure to celebrity culture and fashion through movies and television
What led to the development of the 90s world stage?

Fashion Marketing Dissertation Topics

The impact of fashion marketing on the brains of young people in the UK.
The Beatles had an impact on fashion marketing in the UK.
The impact of culturally influenced fashion marketing on consumer behaviour in Muslim countries.
How has the global fashion industry evolved thanks to the development of digital marketing?
A comparison between British fashion today and fashion marketing in the 1990s.
The impact of sleepers on the sales success of a high-end fashion company in the UK.
The impact of fashion marketing on the environment. How are our lakes being polluted by chemical waste from UK clothing factories?
The impact of supply chain logistics on brand identity and brand perception in the UK fashion industry.
Exploring the link between sport and fashion. A case study of Nike and its sportswear trends.
The function of social media marketing in the UK fashion sector is to change consumer preferences.
The evolution of ball gowns and how they disappeared from the British fashion scene.
What clothes did musicians wear in the 1970s? The most influential bands are examined.
Customers in the UK are influenced by colour when making purchases. Discuss
There are links between fashion, culture, and religion. How fashion marketing has destroyed religious and cultural beliefs.
The relationship between the fashion and beauty industries. The interaction between these two different spheres.

Best Fashion Dissertation Topics

What fashion phenomenon did the members of the famous band The Beatles bring into the world?
The social impact of fashion blogs and publications.
The position of women in society in the light of evolving fashion trends over time.
How useful are a fashion brand’s brand identity and image to business owners in today’s market?
How has the history of leather jackets evolved?
Do animals play an important role in the fashion industry? To what extent is this acceptable?
Lady Diana’s choice of dress and its impact on society at the time.
Is Justin Bieber the new teenage superstar and fashion icon of youth?
Which old and new films have had a major influence on society’s sense of style?
The centuries-old fashion trends that fools have worn
Analysis and study of the hat’s origins and evolution over time in terms of new designs.
Does today’s environment require good social media marketing for quality clothing?
Critically examine children’s fashion trends in the mid-1990s.
Over the years, wizards’ fashion tastes and traditional dress have evolved.
Historical analysis and study of men’s and women’s fashion have been conducted since the early 1800s.

Most Famous Fashion Dissertation Topics

The impact of counterfeit luxury goods on the high-end fashion sector.
Investigating the new fashionable lifestyle of working from home: What is the cost-benefit analysis of working from home?
Examining the recent growth of the wig fashion industry.
How big is the booming cosmetics sector, and what impact does it have on the economy?
A case study of Serena William illustrates how clothing reflects the empowerment of the modern woman.
How does fashion influence consumer mentality?
A case study on Taylor illustrates how teenagers’ musical tastes are influenced by style.
Examining the link between royalty and fashion during the reign of Queen Elizabeth.
How tyrants and monopolists controlled the fashion industry after the Second World War?
Examining the meaning of clothing as a symbol of culture, prestige, and aspiration.
The function of creativity and innovation in the functioning of the fashion industry.
A comprehensive guide to buying upmarket, stylish textiles.
The effect of clothing choice on the thought process.
A comparison and contrast of European and African fashion.
Examining the effects of fashion trends on the operation of a business.

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Exploring the links between culture, identity, and fashion
What connection can be made between religion and fashion?
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An investigation into how fashion trends affect the mental health of a community.
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The comparison of how men and women promote fashion designs.
Learn the skills you need to succeed in your fashion business.
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How has the fashion industry generated jobs for the youth?
How is the attire influenced by the seasons of the year 2022?
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The role of fashion writers in promoting fashion trends.
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Madonna as a case study in costume culture.
Does the fashion industry’s future look promising, given the growth of the internet?
Examining the socio-cultural history of fashion to understand its evolution.
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Who has the greatest influence on contemporary fashion?
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Clothes from the past that are currently in fashion.
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The different identities of the kings of the world and their royal garments.
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A discussion of how vintage trends have influenced the modern fashion industry.
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How does fashion factor into the political discussion?
The fashion industry’s response to Coco Chanel.
Why is Jean Paul Gaultier frequently referred to as the fashion world’s “enfant terrible”?

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173 Creative Fashion Research Topics: Awesome List Of Ideas

The 21st century has amplified fashion such that even a newborn knows about it. However, the challenge of finding unique fashion topics always baffles both college and university students. That is why some of them end up copying whatever they find online or guess whatever comes to mind.

Do you want to save yourself all this unnecessary drama? Keep reading this exceptional guide.

Fashion Industry: Definition

Now, fashion refers to a form of expression at a given time, place, and culture. You may have heard of the latest smartphones, clothing, or even cars – well, that is part of fashion. It is not only limited to clothes and fine jewelry in the boutiques.

For something to be fashionable, it has to do with either new or dominant clothes, hairstyles, accessories, make-up, footwear, or lifestyle. A lot comes into play when it comes to fashion, and as such, it is always subject to change every time. Now that we have jogged your memory on the definition of fashion, let’s get into how to prepare and write a fashion-related thesis paper or art dissertation .

Getting Started With Your Fashion Research Paper

Before you engage in any undertaking, there is the planning process. That is what we want to cover in this section with regards to acing your fashion paper. Now, I know that thousands of websites guide me in writing a top-level research paper on fashion. However, ours is unique – we provide professional tips from our reliable writing service that you will never find anywhere else.

Stay with me as we start journeying through this together:

First, understand your research question on fashion: This is a critical step that will shape how you will answer the question. Break down the question into bits that will help you understand what your professor wanted from you. Second, dive into the research process: I know most lazy students would not want to hear about this step at all. However, it is also crucial in helping you determine the topic and content that will go into your fashion research paper. Select an appropriate topic: After looking at what others have done and identifying the gaps, pick a topic that best communicates your idea. Remember that the subject should be concise, catchy, and appealing to anyone at first sight. Proceed to write an engaging thesis statement about fashion: This is what drives the direction of your essay, and as such, it should be in-depth. A thesis statement on style should capture what you intend to talk about and set the objective for your paper. Draft informative topic sentences for your body paragraphs: Every topic sentence should marry with your thesis statement. A person reading your topic sentences should relate them to the question you posed in the thesis statement. The right topic sentences will give life to your dissertation on fashion in a fantastic way! Looking for supporting evidence: You should be able to back up your topic sentences with trustworthy examples and illustrations. These can either be statistics or case studies, depending on the fashion topic that you are handling. Find an exciting concluding remark: Never underestimate the power of the conclusion paragraph in any form of writing. It determines what the reader will take home after going through the long and tedious body paragraphs. Therefore, it should be as captivating as possible.

After tackling the preparation and writing part, I know you may be asking, ‘where can I find writing ideas for fashion research papers?’ Well, the answer is one scroll away, my friend:

Fashion magazines and books
News stories on fashion events
TV documentaries
Online fashion stores and blogs
This fantastic article (Did you think that I would leave it out?)

You are as ready as a horse prepared for the battle to crush any fashion assignment with all these. But for now, here are 173 of the most impressive fashion ideas for your inspiration.

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What your fashion taste says about you and the psychological impact of fashion
How have women’s movements impacted today’s fashion?
What is the correlation between fashion and 20th-century women empowerment?
The brighter side of invisible branding in fashion
Tools used in fashion marketing
Understanding fashion cycles: From trendy to obsolescence
The impact of fashion in movies on the youth
The role of garments in prehistoric ages
The evolution of style from the 20th century
The role of class in promoting a culture
What influence does the military have on culture?
Understanding the fashion industry: A Multi-billion dollar industry
Fashion trends that were influenced by 1980s music.
The role of dressing in subculture identification
Fashion dressing in the golden age of Queen Elizabeth Era: What it meant ad how it defined social status.
Evaluate why women pay a close look at what they wear than men

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What is the net profit and benefit of the fashion industry?
Fashion ideas that originated from the 80s and are still used in the modern society
The role of fashion in pushing for social agendas
Legalizing of Bhang: Is it just fashionable or a necessity?
Evaluate Retro fashion trends in the 21st century
Investigating the ethics of suing flesh and fur in high fashion
The science behind fashion trends
The Psychology of cross-dressing: What is fueling the massive cross-dressing in today’s society
Luxurious and Royal Fashion trends during the Cold War
Discuss how the media impacts what people wear
What is the relationship between art and high-end fashion
How is the LGBTQ community impacting the fashion industry today?
Icon case study: How music has influenced the successful running of Fenny Beauty
How significant is a celebrities influence on fashion trends: A case study of Beyoncé
Luxurious fashion companies and their impact on the general fashion trends
Investigating the influx of designer products in the fashion market: Have they come affordable, or is there a leak in the market?

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The impact of fake luxurious products on the high-end fashion industry
Investigating working from home the new fashion lifestyle: What is the cost-benefit analysis of working from home
Examining The recent boom in the wig fashion industry
How big is the trending make-up industry ad what is its impact on the economy
How Celebrity events push fashion trends
How fashion translates the empowerment of the modern woman: A case study of Serena William
How masks evolved from protective gears to fashion statements and the danger in the prevailing Covid’19 pandemic
How fashion influences the psychology of its consumers
The role of style in music in influencing teen fashion taste: A case study of Taylor
Investigating the relationship between fashion and royalty during the Queen Elizabeth era.
Analysis of the development and growth of fashion: A case study of Australia
How Britney Spears pioneered the low rise jean fashion trend
Investigating the hair industry: Who are the leading suppliers of hair in the globe, and who are its consumers
How fashion can alter your look: How to look slimmer or curvier using fashion hacks.
Source of leather for your fashionable belt, shoes, and wallet
A study of the entry of trendy beard products into the hair industry

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An analysis of sustainable and ethical fashion brands
The role of innovation and creativity in the running of the fashion industry
A complete guide for buying fashionable high-end textile materials
Understanding the concept of enclothed cognition: The impact your clothing choice has on your mental process
Smart Casual: The latest trendy office fashion
What is the role of fashion accessories in our dressing?
The fashion statement of a handbag in every woman’s life
Ten niches in a fashion that do not exist but should exist
A review of the book Queen of Fashion by Marie Antoinette: How has it influenced style as we know it today?
Investigating the impact of fashion trends in the running of a business
compare and contrast between the European and African fashion
Understanding denim as a fashion trend
How big is the Vlog mass industry, and what is its role in pushing fashion trends
How do age and gender affect what people wear?
Why you should consider the prevailing fashion trends before starting a business
Is Vlog a fashionable wave, or is it here to stay?
The role of Tik-Tok in creating fashion trends and propagating them
Understanding the Androgynous model: A case study of Willy Carter

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How the online industry has changed fashion
Discuss the effects of various professions on what people wear
How successful was the rebranding of Abercrombie and Fintech in 2019
A study of the balance between style and functionality
How do Fashion High-Tea events influence people’s wardrobes?
Strategies to market luxurious fashion brands
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Discuss the effect of COVID-19 lockdowns on fashion
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The role of Jane Austen boos in defining fashion in the golden age
Style in the time of Jane Austen
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What are the challenges of the fashion industry?
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The role of photography in the marketing of fashion brands in today’s world
Marketing strategies of the fashion industry in the 80s
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The part of the color in fashionable dressing
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Understanding fashion and Masculinity
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Did type exist in medieval times?
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The contribution of fashion to economic growth.
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Traditional textile fashion designs and their reemergence in the 21st century
A study on the earliest American fashion
Effects of fashion on people’s self-esteem and self-worth
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The role of crossover fashion in comedy
Is crossover fashion the next big thing?
The mechanism of the fashion industry: How it works
Characterizing modern fashion dressing
The relationship between cancel culture and fashion
The role of culture in shaping social trends
Discuss the rising culture of fashion among the youth
Why it is essential to consider the style for a wedding ceremony
How the fashion industry has created employment
How different seasons of the year determine what people wear
The impact of covid-19 on our current lifestyle

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Did the pandemic have any impact on fashion trends?
Investigating the relationship between fashion, identity, and culture
What is the relationship between fashion and religion?
A list of celebrities considered fashion icons ad their contribution to fashion trends.
The relationship between plastic surgery and pushing fashion brand
Investigating the influence of fashion trends on the mental health of a community
The innovation of Nylon in the fashion industry
Investigating the decline of some fashionable attires. A case study of the tie
The concept of In cooperating fashion designs in school uniforms for expensive schools
Trade fairs in the fashion business
The role of women in the fashion industry
Challenges to expect as an entrepreneur in the fashion industry
Contrasting the use of men vs. women in marketing fashion designs
A guide on building a successful fashion business
The evolution of minimalism in fashion dressing
The necessary skills to learn before starting your fashion business
Top trendy fashion style by entrepreneurs
Relationship between liberalism and fashion
Understanding the influence of feminism on fashion

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How are online stores promoting fashion in developed nations?
Emergent fashion trends following the pandemic
Impact of climate on fashion trends
Fashion trends for people with disabilities
A study of the baby clothing fashion industry
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Analyzing the direction of adults looking like children
A study in the origin of the motif
A study on the falling popularity of office wear in the workplace
How working at home has impacted the workplace office industry.
Understanding the decline in popularity of leather accessories
Investigating the sustainability of some fashion trends
Investigating the impact of fashion on the environment and its resources
The origin and evolution of beachwear
The understanding manner in the textile industry.
Where did waistcoats originate from in the US?
Checked Vs. plain fashion dressing
The trendy use of unconventional material for dressing: A case study of lady gaga

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Dress, body and self: research in the social psychology of dress

Kim Johnson 1 ,
Sharron J Lennon 2 &
Nancy Rudd 3

Fashion and Textiles volume 1 , Article number: 20 ( 2014 ) Cite this article

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The purpose of this research was to provide a critical review of key research areas within the social psychology of dress. The review addresses published research in two broad areas: (1) dress as a stimulus and its influence on (a) attributions by others, attributions about self, and on one's behavior and (2) relationships between dress, the body, and the self. We identify theoretical approaches used in conducting research in these areas, provide an abbreviated background of research in these areas highlighting key findings, and identify future research directions and possibilities. The subject matter presented features developing topics within the social psychology of dress and is useful for undergraduate students who want an overview of the content area. It is also useful for graduate students (1) who want to learn about the major scholars in these key areas of inquiry who have moved the field forward, or (2) who are looking for ideas for their own thesis or dissertation research. Finally, information in this paper is useful for professors who research or teach the social psychology of dress.

Introduction

A few social scientists in the 19 th Century studied dress as related to culture, individuals, and social groups, but it was not until the middle of the 20 th Century that home economists began to pursue a scholarly interest in social science aspects of dress (Roach-Higgins 1993 ). Dress is defined as “an assemblage of modifications of the body and/or supplements to the body” (Roach-Higgins & Eicher 1992 , p. 1). Body modifications include cosmetic use, suntanning, piercing, tattooing, dieting, exercising, and cosmetic surgery among others. Body supplements include, but are not limited to, accessories, clothing, hearing aids, and glasses. By the 1950s social science theories from economics, psychology, social psychology, and sociology were being used to study dress and human behavior (Rudd 1991 , p. 24).

A range of topics might be included under the phrase social psychology of dress but we use it to refer to research that attempts to answer questions concerned with how an individual’s dress-related beliefs, attitudes, perceptions, feelings, and behaviors are shaped by others and one’s self. The social psychology of dress is concerned with how an individual’s dress affects the behavior of self as well as the behavior of others toward the self (Johnson & Lennon 2014 ).

Among several topics that could be included in a critical review of research addressing the social psychology of dress, we focused our work on a review of published research in two broad areas: (1) dress as a stimulus and its influence on (a) attributions by others, attributions about self, and on one’s own behavior and (2) relationships between dress, the body, and the self. Our goal was to identify theoretical approaches used in conducting research in these areas, provide an abbreviated background of research in these areas highlighting key findings, and to identify future research directions and possibilities. The content presented features developing topics within the social psychology of dress and is useful for undergraduate students who want an overview of the content area. It is also useful for graduate students (1) who want to learn about the major scholars in these key areas of inquiry who have moved the field forward, or (2) who are looking for ideas for their own thesis or dissertation research. Finally, information in this paper is useful for professors who research or teach the social psychology of dress.

Body supplements as stimulus variables

In studying the social psychology of dress, researchers have often focused on dress as a stimulus variable; for example, the effects of dress on impression formation, attributions, and social perception (see Lennon & Davis 1989 ) or the effects of dress on behaviors (see Johnson et al. 2008 ). The context within which dress is perceived (Damhorst 1984-85 ) as well as characteristics of perceivers of clothed individuals (Burns & Lennon 1993 ) also has a profound effect on what is perceived about others. In the remainder of this section we focus on three research streams that center on dress (i.e., body supplements) as stimuli.

Provocative dress as stimuli

In the 1980s researchers were interested in women’s provocative (revealing, sexy) dress and the extent to which men and women attributed the same meaning to it. For example, both Edmonds and Cahoon ( 1986 ) and Cahoon and Edmonds ( 1987 ) found ratings of women who wore provocative dress were more negative than ratings of women who wore non-provocative dress. No specific theory was identified by these authors as guiding their research. Overall, when wearing provocative dress a model was rated more sexually appealing, more attractive, less faithful in marriage, more likely to engage in sexual teasing, more likely to use sex for personal gain, more likely to be sexually experienced, and more likely to be raped than when wearing conservative dress. Cahoon and Edmonds found that men and women made similar judgments, although men’s were more extreme than women’s. Abbey et al. ( 1987 ) studied whether women’s sexual intent and interest as conveyed by revealing dress was misinterpreted by men. The authors developed two dress conditions: revealing (slit skirt, low cut blouse, high heeled shoes) and non-revealing (skirt without a slit, blouse buttoned to neck, boots). Participants rated the stimulus person on a series of adjective traits. As compared to when wearing the non-revealing clothing, when wearing the revealing clothing the stimulus person was rated significantly more flirtatious, sexy, seductive, promiscuous, sophisticated, assertive, and less sincere and considerate. This research was not guided by theory.

Taking this research another step forward, in the 1990s dress researchers began to investigate how women’s provocative (revealing, sexy) dress was implicated in attributions of responsibility for their own sexual assaults (Lewis & Johnson 1989 ; Workman & Freeburg 1999 ; Workman & Orr 1996 ) and sexual harassment (Johnson & Workman 1992 , 1994 ; Workman & Johnson 1991 ). These researchers tended to use attribution theories (McLeod, 2010 ) to guide their research. Their results showed that provocative, skimpy, see-through, or short items of dress, as well as use of heavy makeup (body modification), were cues used to assign responsibility to women for their sexual assaults and experiences of sexual harassment. For example, Johnson and Workman ( 1992 ) studied likelihood of sexual harassment as a function of women’s provocative dress. A model was photographed wearing a dark suit jacket, above-the-knee skirt, a low-cut blouse, dark hose, and high heels (provocative condition) or wearing a dark suit jacket, below-the-knee skirt, high-cut blouse, neutral hose, and moderate heels (non-provocative condition). As compared to when wearing non-provocative dress, when wearing provocative dress the model was rated as significantly more likely to provoke sexual harassment and to be sexually harassed.

Recently, researchers have resurrected the topic of provocative (revealing, sexy) dress. However, their interest is in determining the extent to which women and girls are depicted in provocative dress in the media (in magazines, in online retail stores) and the potential consequences of those depictions, such as objectification. These researchers have often used objectification theory to guide their research. According to objectification theory (Fredrickson & Roberts 1997 ) women living in sexually saturated cultures are looked at, evaluated, and potentially objectified and treated as objects valued for their use by others. Objectification theory focuses on sexual objectification as a function of objectifying gaze, which is experienced in actual social encounters, media depictions of social encounters, and media depictions that focus on bodies and body parts. The theory explains that objectifying gaze evokes an objectified state of consciousness which influences self-perceptions. This objectified state of consciousness has consequences such as habitual body and appearance monitoring and requires cognitive effort that can result in difficulty with task performance (Szymanski et al. 2011 ). In such an environment, women may perceive their bodies from a third-person perspective, treating themselves as objects to be looked at and evaluated.

Self-objectification occurs when people perceive and describe their bodies as a function of appearance instead of accomplishments (Harrison & Fredrickson 2003 ). Experimental research shows that self-objectification in women can be induced by revealing clothing manipulations such as asking women to try on and evaluate the fit of a swimsuit as compared to a bulky sweater (Fredrickson et al. 1998 ).

To examine changes in sexualizing (provocative) characteristics with which girls are portrayed in the media, researchers have content analyzed girls’ clothing in two magazines (Graff et al. 2013 ). Clothing was coded as having sexualizing characteristics (e.g., tightness, bare midriffs, high-heeled shoes) and childlike characteristics (e.g., frills, childlike print, pigtail hair styles). The researchers found an increase in sexualized aspects of dress in depictions of girls from 1971 through 2011. To determine the extent of sexualization in girls’ clothing, researchers have content analyzed girls’ clothing available on 15 retailer websites (Goodin et al. 2011 ). Every girl’s clothing item on each of the retailer websites was coded for sexualizing aspects; 4% was coded as definitely sexualizing. Ambiguously sexualizing clothing (25%) had both sexualizing and childlike characteristics. Abercrombie Kids’ clothing had a higher percentage of sexualizing characteristics than all the other stores (44% versus 4%). These two studies document that girls are increasingly depicted in sexualizing clothing in U.S. media and that they are offered sexualized clothing by major retailers via their websites.

Since girls are increasingly sexualized, to determine if sexualized dress affects how girls are perceived by others Graff et al. ( 2012 ) designed an experiment wherein they manipulated the sexualizing aspects of the clothing of a 5 th grade girl. There were three clothing conditions: childlike (a grey t-shirt, jeans, and black Mary Jane shoes), ambiguously sexualized (leopard print dress of moderate length), highly sexualized (short dress, leopard print cardigan, purse). In the definitely sexualized condition, undergraduate students rated the girl as less moral, self-respecting, capable, determined, competent, and intelligent than when she was depicted in either the childlike or the ambiguously sexualized conditions. Thus, wearing sexualized clothing can affect how girls are perceived by others, so it is possible that sexualized clothing could lead to self-objectification in girls just as in the case of women (Tiggemann & Andrew 2012 ).

Objectification theory has been useful in identifying probable processes underlying the association between women’s provocative dress and negative inferences. In a study using adult stimuli, Gurung and Chrouser ( 2007 ) presented photos of female Olympic athletes in uniform and in provocative (defined as minimal) dress. College women rated the photos and when provocatively dressed, as compared to the uniform condition, the women were rated as more attractive, more feminine, more sexually experienced, more desirable, but also less capable, less strong, less determined, less intelligent, and as having less self-respect. These results are similar to what had previously been found by researchers in the 1980s (Abbey et al. 1987 ; Cahoon & Edmonds 1987 ; Edmonds & Cahoon 1986 ). This outcome is considered objectifying because the overall impression is negative and sexist. Thus, this line of research does more than demonstrate that provocative dress evokes inferences, it suggests the process by which that occurs: provocative dress leads to objectification of the woman so dressed and it is the objectification that leads to the inferences.

In a more direct assessment of the relationship between provocative dress and objectification of others, Holland and Haslam ( 2013 ) manipulated the dress (provocative or plain clothing) of two models (thin or overweight) who were rated equally attractive in facial attractiveness. Since objectification involves inspecting the body, the authors measured participants’ attention to the models’ bodies. Objectification also involves denying human qualities to the objectified person. Two such qualities are perceived agency (e.g., ability to think and form intentions) and moral agency (e.g., capacity to engage in moral or immoral actions). Several findings are relevant to the research on provocative dress. As compared to models wearing plain clothing, models wearing provocative clothing were attributed less perceived agency (e.g., ability to reason, ability to choose) and less moral agency [e.g., “how intentional do you believe the woman’s behavior is?” (p. 463)]. Results showed that more objectified gaze was directed toward the bodies of the models when they were dressed in provocative clothing as compared to when dressed in plain clothing. This outcome is considered objectifying because the models’ bodies were inspected more when wearing provocative dress, and because in that condition they were perceived as having less of the qualities normally attributed to humans.

In an experimental study guided by objectification theory, Tiggemann and Andrew ( 2012 ) studied the effects of clothing on self-perceptions of state self-objectification, state body shame, state body dissatisfaction, and negative mood. However, unlike studies (e.g., Fredrickson et al. 1998 ) in which participants were asked to try on and evaluate either a bathing suit or a sweater, Tiggemann and Andrew instructed their participants to “imagine what you would be seeing, feeling, and thinking” (p. 648) in scenarios. There were four scenarios: thinking about wearing a bathing suit in public, thinking about wearing a bathing suit in a dressing room, thinking about wearing a sweater in public, and thinking about wearing a sweater in a dressing room. The researchers found main effects for clothing such that as compared to thinking about wearing a sweater, thinking about wearing a bathing suit resulted in higher state self-objectification, higher state body shame, higher state body dissatisfaction, and greater negative mood. The fact that the manipulation only involved thinking about wearing clothing, rather than actually wearing such clothing, demonstrates the power of revealing (provocative, sexy) dress in that we only have to think about wearing it to have it affect our self-perceptions.

Taking extant research into account we encourage researchers to continue to investigate the topic of provocative (sexy, revealing) dress for both men and women to replicate the results for women and to determine if revealing dress for men might evoke the kinds of inferences evoked by women wearing revealing dress. Furthermore, research that delineates the role of objectification in the process by which this association between dress and inferences occurs would be useful. Although it would not be ethical to use the experimental strategy used by previous researchers (Fredrickson et al. 1998 ) with children, it is possible that researchers could devise correlational studies to investigate the extent to which wearing and/or viewing sexualized clothing might lead to self- and other-objectification in girls.

Research on red dress

Researchers who study the social psychology of dress have seldom focused on dress color. However, in the 1980s and 1990s a few researchers investigated color in the context of retail color analysis systems that focused on personal coloring (Abramov 1985 ; Francis & Evans 1987 ; Hilliker & Rogers 1988 ; Radeloff 1991 ). For example, Francis and Evans found that stimulus persons were actually perceived positively when not wearing their recommended personal colors. Hilliker and Rogers surveyed managers of apparel stores about the use of color analysis systems and found some impact on the marketplace, but disagreement among the managers on the value of the systems. Abramov critiqued color analysis for being unclear, ambiguous, and for the inability to substantiate claims. Most of these studies were not guided by a psychological theory of color.

Since the 1990s, researchers have developed a theory of color psychology (Elliot & Maier 2007 ) called color-in-context theory. Like other variables that affect social perception, the theory explains that color also conveys meaning which varies as a function of the context in which the color is perceived. Accordingly, the meanings of colors are learned over time through repeated pairings with a particular experience or message (e.g., red stop light and danger) or with biological tendencies to respond to color in certain contexts. For example, female non-human primates display red on parts of their bodies when nearing ovulation; hence red is associated with lust, fertility, and sexuality (Guéguen and Jacob 2013 ). As a function of these associations between colors and experiences, messages, or biological tendencies, people either display approach responses or avoidance responses but are largely unaware of how color affects them. In this section we review studies that examine the effects of red in relational contexts such as interpersonal attraction. However, there is evidence that red is detrimental in achievement (i.e., academic or hiring) contexts (e.g., Maier et al. 2013 ) and that red signals dominance and affects outcomes in competitive sporting contests (e.g., Feltman and Elliot 2011 ; Hagemann et al. 2008 ).

Recently researchers have used color-in-context theory to study the effects of red dress (shirts, dresses) on impressions related to sexual intent, attractiveness, dominance, and competence. Some of these studies were guided by color-in-context theory. Guéguen ( 2012 ) studied men’s perceptions of women’s sexual intent and attractiveness as a function of shirt color. Male participants viewed a photo of a woman wearing a t-shirt that varied in color. When wearing a red t-shirt as compared to the other colors, the woman was judged to be more attractive and to have greater sexual intent. Pazda et al. ( 2014a , [ b ]) conducted an experiment designed to determine why men perceive women who wear red to be more attractive than those who wear other colors. They argued that red is associated with sexual receptivity due to cultural pairings of red and female sexuality (e.g., red light district, sexy red lingerie). Men participated in an online experiment in which they were exposed to a woman wearing either a red, black, or white dress. When wearing the red dress the woman was rated as more sexually receptive than when wearing either the white or the black dresses. The woman was also rated on attractiveness and by performing a mediation analysis the researchers determined that when wearing the red dress, the ratings of her attractiveness as a function of red were no longer significant; in other words, the reason she was rated as more attractive when wearing the red dress was due to the fact that she was also perceived as more sexually receptive.

Pazda et al. ( 2014a , [ b ]), interested in women’s perceptions of other women as a function of their clothing color, conducted a series of experiments. They reasoned that like men, women would also make the connection between a woman’s red dress and her sexual receptivity and perceive her to be a sexual competitor. In their first experiment they found that women rated the stimulus woman as more sexually receptive when wearing a red dress as compared to when she was wearing a white dress. In a second experiment the woman wearing a red dress was not only rated more sexually receptive, she was also derogated more since ratings of her sexual fidelity were lower when wearing a red dress as compared to a white dress. Finally, in a third experiment the stimulus woman was again rated more sexually receptive; this time when she wore a red shirt as compared to when she wore a green shirt. The authors assessed the likelihood that their respondents would introduce the stimulus person to their boyfriends and the likelihood that they would let their boyfriends spend time with the stimulus person. Participants in the red shirt condition were more likely to keep their boyfriends from interacting with the stimulus person than participants in the green shirt condition. Thus, both men and women indicated women wearing red are sexually receptive.

Also interested in color, Roberts et al. ( 2010 ) were interested in determining whether clothing color affects the wearer of the clothing (e.g., do women act provocatively when wearing red clothing?) or does clothing color affect the perceiver of the person wearing the colored clothing. To answer this question, they devised a complicated series of experiments. In the first study, male and female models (ten of each) were photographed wearing each of six different colors of t-shirts. Undergraduates of the opposite sex rated the photographed models on attractiveness. Both male and female models were rated most attractive when wearing red and black t-shirts. In study two the same photos were used, but the t-shirts were masked by a gray rectangle. Compared to when they wore white t-shirts, male models were judged to be more attractive by both men and women when they wore the red t-shirts, even though the red color was not visible. In the third study the t-shirt colors in the photos were digitally altered, so that images could be compared in which red or white t-shirts were worn with those in which red had been altered to white and white had been altered to red. Male models wearing red were rated more attractive than male models wearing white that had been altered to appear red. Also male models wearing red shirts digitally altered to appear white were rated more attractive than male models actually photographed in white. These effects did not occur for female models. The authors reasoned that if clothing color only affected perceivers, then the results should be the same when a model is photographed in red as well as when the model is photographed in white which is subsequently altered to appear red. Since this did not happen, the authors concluded that clothing color affects both the wearer and the perceiver.

In addition, the effects of red dress on impressions also extend to behaviors. Kayser et al. ( 2010 ) conducted a series of experiments. For experiment one, a female stimulus person was photographed in either a red t-shirt or a green one. Male participants were shown a photo of the woman and given a list of questions from which to choose five to ask her. Because women wearing red are perceived to be more sexually receptive and to have greater sexual intent than when wearing other colors, the researchers expected the men who saw the woman in the red dress to select intimate questions to ask and this is what they found. In a second experiment, the female stimulus person wore either a red or a blue t-shirt. After seeing her picture the male participants were told that they would be interacting with her, where she would be sitting, and that they could place their chairs wherever they wished to sit. The men expecting to interact with the red-shirted woman placed their chairs significantly closer to her chair than when they expected to interact with a blue-shirted woman.

In a field experiment (Guéguen 2012 ), five female confederates wore t-shirts of red or other colors and stood by the side of a road to hitchhike. The t-shirt color did not affect women drivers, but significantly more men stopped to pick up the female confederates when they wore the red t-shirts as compared to all the other colors. In a similar study researchers (Guéguen & Jacob 2013 ) altered the color of a woman’s clothing on an online meeting site so that the woman was shown wearing red or several other colors. The women received significantly more contacts when her clothing had been altered to be red than any of the other t-shirt colors.

Researchers should continue conducting research about the color of dress items using color-in-context theory. One context important to consider in this research stream is the cultural context within which the research is conducted. To begin, other colors in addition to red should be studied for their meanings within and across cultural contexts. Since red is associated with sexual receptivity, red clothing should be investigated in the context of the research on provocative dress. For example, would women wearing red revealing dress be judged more provocative than women wearing the same clothing in different colors? Also researchers interested in girls’ and women’s depictions in the media, could investigate the effects of red dress on perceptions of sexual intent and objectification.

Effects of dress on the behavior of the wearer

Several researchers studying the social psychology of dress have reviewed the research literature (Davis 1984 ; Lennon and Davis 1989 ) and some have analyzed that research (see Damhorst 1990 ; Hutton 1984 ; Johnson et al. 2008 for reviews). In these reviews, Damhorst and Hutton focused on the effect of dress on person perception or impression formation. Johnson et al., however, focused their analysis on behaviors evoked by dress. An emerging line of research focuses on the effects of dress on the behavior of the wearer (Adam and Galinsky 2012 ; Frank and Galinsky 1988 ; Fredrickson et al. 1998 ; Gino et al. 2010 ; Hebl et al. 2004 ; Kouchaki et al. 2014 ; Martins et al. 2007 ).

Fredrickson et al. ( 1998 ), Hebl et al. ( 2004 ), and Martins et al. ( 2007 ) all used objectification theory to guide experiments about women’s and men’s body image experience. They were interested in the extent to which wearing revealing dress could trigger self-objectification. The theory predicts that self-objectification manifests in performance detriments on a task subsequent to a self-objectifying experience. Frederickson et al. had participants complete a shopping task. They entered a dressing room, tried on either a one piece swimsuit or a bulky sweater, and evaluated the fit in a mirror as they would if buying the garment. Then they completed a math performance test. The women who wore a swimsuit performed more poorly on the math test than women wearing a sweater; no such effects were found for men. A few years later Hebl et al. ( 2004 ) used the same procedure to study ethnic differences in self-objectification. Participants were Caucasian, African American, Hispanic, and Asian American undergraduate men and women. Participants completed the same shopping task and math test. Participants who tried on the swimsuits performed worse on the math test than participants who tried on the sweater and these results held for both men and women of all ethnicities.

Martins et al. ( 2007 ) used the same shopping task as Frederickson et al. ( 1998 ) and Hebl et al. ( 2004 ), but employed a different behavioral measure. Their participants were gay and heterosexual men and the garment they tried on was either Speedo men’s briefs or a turtleneck sweater. After the shopping task the men were given the opportunity to sample and evaluate a snack and the amount eaten was measured. Wearing the Speedo affected eating for the gay men, but not the heterosexual men, such that gay men in the Speedo condition ate significantly less of the snack than gay men in the sweater condition. Taken together these studies demonstrate that a nominal clothing manipulation can have effects on the behavior of the wearer.

In one of the first studies to demonstrate the effects of clothing on the wearer, Frank and Gilovich ( 1988 ) noted that the color black is associated with evil and death in many cultures. They studied the extent to which players wearing black uniforms were judged more evil and aggressive than players wearing uniforms of other colors. They analyzed penalties awarded for aggressive behavior in football and ice hockey players. Players who wore black uniforms received more penalties for their aggressive behavior than those who wore other uniform colors. Since the penalty results could be due to biased refereeing, the authors videotaped a staged football game in which the defensive team wore either black or white uniforms. The same events were depicted in each version of the videotape. Participants watched short videos and rated the plays as more aggressive when the team members wore black as compared to white uniforms. In another part of the study, participants were assigned to wear either black or white uniform shirts. While wearing the shirts they were asked the type of games they would like to play; the black-shirted participants selected more aggressive games than the white-shirted participants. The authors interpreted the results of all the studies to mean that players wearing black are aggressive. Yet, when the level of aggressiveness was held constant in the staged football game, referees still perceived black-uniformed players to be more aggressive than white-uniformed players. The authors concluded that the color of the black uniform affects the wearer and the perceiver. This study’s results are similar to those of the researchers studying red dress who found that the color red is associated with a cultural meaning that affects both the wearer and the perceiver of the red dress (Roberts et al. 2010 ).

In a similar way, Adam and Galinsky ( 2012 ) determined that when clothing has symbolic meaning for the wearer, it also affects the wearer’s behavior. The researchers found that a white lab coat was associated with traits related to attentiveness. Then they conducted an experiment in which one group wore a white lab coat described as a painter’s coat and another group wore the same lab coat which was described as a medical doctor’s lab coat. A third group saw, but did not wear, a lab coat described as a medical doctor’s lab coat. Participants then performed an experimental task that required selective attention. The group that wore the coat described as a medical doctor’s lab coat outperformed both of the other two groups.

Gino et al. ( 2010 ) studied the effects of wearing designer sunglasses that were described either as counterfeit or authentic Chloe sunglasses on one’s own behaviors and perceptions of others. Although counterfeits convey status to others, they also mean that the wearers are pretending to be something they are not (i.e., wealthy enough to purchase authentic sunglasses). Participants who thought they were wearing fake sunglasses cheated significantly more on two experimental tasks than those who thought they were wearing authentic sunglasses. In a second experiment, the researchers showed that participants who believed they were wearing counterfeit sunglasses perceived others’ behaviors as more dishonest, less truthful, and more likely to be unethical than those wearing authentic sunglasses. In a third experiment the researchers showed that the effect for wearing counterfeit sunglasses on one’s own behavior was due to the meaning of inauthenticity attributed to the counterfeit sunglasses. Consistent with Adam and Galinsky ( 2012 ) and Frank and Gilovich (1988), in Gino et al. the effect of dress on one’s own behavior was due to the meaning of the dress cue in a context relevant to the meaning of that dress cue. While none of these three studies articulated a specific theory to guide their research, Adams and Galinsky outlined an enclothed cognition framework, which explained that dress affects wearers due to the symbolic meaning of the dress and the physical experience of wearing that dress item.

To summarize the research on the effects of dress on the behavior of the wearer, each of these studies reported research focused on a dress cue associated with cultural meaning. Some of the researchers had to first determine that meaning. The manipulations were designed so that the meaning of the dress cues was salient for the context of the manipulation. For example, in the objectification studies the revealingness of dress was varied in the context of a dressing room mirror where the revealing nature of the cue would be relevant. So to extend the enclothed cognition framework, we suggest that for dress to affect the wearer, the context of the experimental task needs to be such that the meaning of the dress item is salient.

Future researchers may continue to pursue the effects of dress on the wearer. The extended enclothed cognition framework could be applied to school uniforms. A possible research question could be that if school uniforms are associated with powerlessness among schoolchildren, would wearing school uniforms affect the level of effort children expend to solve homework problems or write papers?

It is interesting that previous researchers who examined the effect of school uniforms on various tasks did not ask children what associations uniforms had for them (e.g., Behling 1994 , 1995 ; Behling and Williams 1991 ). This question is clearly an avenue for renewed research in this area. Another situation to which the extended enclothed cognition framework might be investigated is in the context of professional sports. Since wearing a sweatshirt or cap with a professional team’s logo is associated with being a fan of that team, would people wearing those items evaluate that team’s performance higher than people wearing another team’s logos? Would they provide more excuses for their team than fans not wearing the team’s logos? We encourage researchers to continue to investigate the effects of dress on one’s own behaviors utilizing a range of dress cues (e.g., cosmetics, tattoos, and piercings).

Dress and the self

An ongoing area of research within the social psychology of dress is relationships between dress and the self. Although some researchers use the terms identity and self interchangeably, it is our position that they are not the same concepts but are related. We begin our discussion of the self with research on the body.

The physical body and the self

Whereas the first section of our review focused on body supplements (i.e., the clothed body), this section focuses on body modifications or how the body is altered. Within this discussion, the two research directions that we include are (1) body modifications that carry some risk, as opposed to routine modifications that typically do not, and (2) the influence of body talk and social comparison as variables influencing body image.

Body modifications that carry some risk

Societal standards of attractiveness in the Western world often focus on a thin appearance for women and a mesomorphic but muscular appearance for men (Karazia et al. 2013 ). Internalization of societal standards presented through various media outlets is widely recognized as a primary predictor of body dissatisfaction and risky appearance management behaviors including eating pathology among women (Cafri et al. 2005a , [ b ]), muscle enhancement and disordered eating behaviors in men (Tylka 2011 ), tattooing among young adults (Mun et al. 2012 ), and tanning among adolescents (Prior et al. 2014 ; Yoo & Kim, 2014 ). While there are several other risky appearance management behaviors in the early stages of investigation (e.g., extreme body makeovers, cosmetic procedures on male and female private parts, multiple cosmetic procedures), we isolate just a few behaviors to illustrate the impact of changing standards of attractiveness on widespread appearance management practices in the presentation of self.

Experimental research has demonstrated that exposure to social and cultural norms for appearance (via idealized images) leads to greater dissatisfaction with the body in general for both men and women (Blond 2008 ; Grabe et al. 2008 ); yet a meta-analysis of eight research studies conducted in real life settings suggested that these appearance norms were more rigid, narrowly defined, and prevalent for women than for men (Buote et al. 2011 ). These researchers also noted that women reported frequent exposure to social norms of appearance (i.e., considered bombardment by many women), the norms themselves were unrealistic, yet the nature of the messages was that these norms are perfectly attainable with enough time, money, and effort. Men, on the other hand, indicated that they were exposed to flexible social norms of appearance, and therefore report feeling less pressure to attain a particular standard in presenting their appearance to others (Buote et al. 2011 ).

Eating disorders

A recent stream of research related to individuals with eating disorders is concerned with the practice of body checking (i.e., weighing, measuring or otherwise assessing body parts through pinching, sucking in the abdomen, tapping it for flatness). Such checking behaviors may morph into body avoidance (i.e., avoiding looking in mirrors or windows at one’s reflection, avoiding gym locker rooms or situations involving showing the body to others) (White & Warren 2011 ), the manifestation of eating disorders (Haase et al. 2011 ), obsession with one’s weight or body shape, and a critical evaluation of either aspect (Smeets et al. 2011 ). The propensity to engage in body checking appears to be tied to ethnicity as White and Warren found, in their comparison of Caucasian women and women of color (Asian American, African American, and Latin American). They found significant differences in body checking and avoidance behaviors in Caucasian women and Asian American women over African American and Latin American women. Across all the women, White and Warren found positive and significant correlations between body checking and (1) avoidance behaviors and higher body mass index, (2) internalization of a thin ideal appearance, (3) eating disturbances, and (4) other clinical impairments such as debilitating negative thoughts.

Another characteristic of individuals with eating disorders is that they habitually weigh themselves. Self-weighing behaviors and their connection to body modification has been the focus of several researchers. Research teams have documented that self-weighing led to weight loss maintenance (Butryn et al. 2007 ) and prevention of weight gain (Levitsky et al. 2006 ). Other researchers found that self-weighing contributed to risky weight control behaviors such as fasting (Neumark-Sztainer et al. 2006 ) and even to weight gain (Needham et al. 2010 ). Lately, gender differences have also been investigated relative to self-weighing. Klos et al. ( 2012 ) found self-weighing was related to a strong investment in appearance, preoccupation with body shape, and higher weight among women. However, among men self-weighing was related to body satisfaction, investment in health and fitness, and positive evaluation of health.

One interesting departure from weight as a generalized aspect of body concern among women is the examination of wedding-related weight change. Considering the enormous cost of weddings, estimated to average $20,000 in the United States (Wong 2005 ), and the number of wedding magazines, websites, and self-help books on weddings (Villepigue et al. 2005 ), it is not surprising that many brides-to-be want to lose weight for their special occasion. Researchers have shown that an average amount of intended weight loss prior to a wedding is 20 pounds in both the U.S. and Australia with between 12% and 33% of brides-to-be reporting that they had been advised by someone else to lose weight (Prichard & Tiggemann 2009 ). About 50% of brides hoped to achieve weight loss, yet most brides did not actually experience a change in weight (Prichard & Tiggemann, 2014 ); however, when questioned about six months after their weddings, brides indicated that they had gained about four pounds. Those who were told to lose weight by significant others such as friends, family members, or fiancé gained significantly more than those who were not told to do so, suggesting that wedding-related weight change can have repercussions for post wedding body satisfaction and eating behaviors. Regaining weight is typical, given that many people who lose weight regain it with a year or so of losing it.

Drive for muscularity

Researchers have found that body modifications practiced by men are related more to developing muscularity than to striving for a thin body (Cafri et al. 2005a , [ b ]) with particular emphasis placed on developing the upper body areas of chest and biceps (Thompson & Cafri 2007 ). The means to achieve this body modification may include risky behaviors such as excessive exercise and weight training, extreme dieting and dehydration to emphasize musculature, and use of appearance or performance enhancing substances (Hildebrandt et al. 2010 ).

One possible explanation for men’s drive for muscularity may be objectification. While objectification theory was originally proposed to address women’s objectification, it has been extended to men (Hebl et al. 2004 ; Martins et al. 2007 ). These researchers determined that like women, men are objectified in Western and westernized culture and can be induced to self-objectify via revealing clothing manipulations.

Researchers have also examined how men are affected by media imagery that features buff, well-muscled, thin, attractive male bodies as the aesthetic norm. Kolbe and Albanese ( 1996 ) undertook a content analysis of men’s lifestyle magazines and found that most of the advertised male bodies were not “ordinary,” but were strong and hard bodies, or as the authors concluded, objectified and depersonalized. Pope et al. ( 2000 ) found that advertisements for many types of products from cars to underwear utilized male models with body-builder physiques (i.e., exaggerated “6 pack” abdominal muscles, huge chests and shoulders, yet lean); they suggested that men had become focused on muscularity as a cultural symbol of masculinity because they perceived that women were usurping some of their social standing in the workforce. Hellmich ( 2000 ) concurred and suggested that men were overwhelmed with images of half-naked, muscular men and that they too were targets of objectification. Other researchers (e.g., Elliott & Elliott 2005 ; Patterson & England 2000 ) confirmed these findings – that most images in men’s magazines featured mesomorphic, strong, muscular, and hyper-masculine bodies.

How do men respond to such advertising images? Elliott and Elliott ( 2005 ) conducted focus interviews with 40 male college students, ages 18-31, and showed them six different advertisements in lifestyles magazines. They found six distinct types of response, two negative, two neutral, and two positive. Negative responses were (1) homophobic (those who saw the ads as stereotypically homosexual, bordering on pornography), perhaps threatening their own perceived masculinity or (2) gender stereotyping (those who saw the ads as depicting body consciousness or vanity, traits that they considered to be feminine). Neutral responses were (3) legitimizing exploitation as a marketing tool (those who recognized that naked chests or exaggerated body parts were shown and sometimes with no heads, making them less than human, but recognizing that sex sells products), and (4) disassociating oneself from the muscular body ideals shown in the ads (recognizing that the images represented unattainable body types or shapes). Positive responses were (5) admiration of real or attainable “average” male bodies and (6) appreciating some naked advertising images as art, rather than as sexual objects. The researchers concluded that men do see their gender objectified in advertising, resulting in different responses or perceived threats to self.

There is evidence that experiencing these objectified images of the male body is also partially responsible for muscle dysmorphia, a condition in which men become obsessed with achieving muscularity (Leit et al. 2002 ). Understanding contributors to the development of muscle dysmorphia is important as the condition can lead to risky appearance management behaviors such as extreme body-building, eating disorders, and use of anabolic steroids to gain bulk (Bradley et al. 2014 ; Maida & Armstrong 2005 ). In an experiment, Maida and Armstrong exposed 82 undergraduate men to 30 slides of advertisements and then asked them to complete a body image perception test. Men’s body satisfaction was affected by exposure to the images, such that they wanted to be notably more muscular than they were.

Contemporary researchers have found that drive for muscularity is heightened among men when there is a perceived threat to their masculinity such as performance on some task (Steinfeldt et al. 2011 ) or perceiving that they hold some less masculine traits (Blashill, 2011). Conversely, researchers have also suggested that body dissatisfaction and drive for muscularity can be reduced by developing a mindfulness approach to the body characterized by attention to present-moment experiences such as how one might feel during a certain activity like yoga or riding a bicycle (Lavender et al. 2012 ). While the investigation of mindfulness to mitigate negative body image and negative appearance behaviors is relatively new, it is a promising area of investigation.

Tattooing is not necessarily a risky behavior in and of itself, as most tattoo parlors take health precautions with the use of sterile instruments and clean environments. However, research has focused on other risk-taking behaviors that tattooed individuals may engage in, including drinking, smoking, shoplifting, and drug use (Deschesnes et al. 2006 ) as well as and early and risky sexual activity (Koch, Roberts, Armstrong, & Owen, 2007). Tattoos have also been studied as a bodily expression of uniqueness (Mun et al. 2012 ; Tiggemann & Hopkins 2011 ) but not necessarily reflecting a stronger investment in appearance (Tiggemann & Hopkins 2011 ).

Tanning behaviors are strongly associated with skin cancer, just as smoking is associated with lung cancer. In fact, the International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organization has classified ultraviolet radiation from the sun and tanning devices that emit ultraviolet light as group 1 carcinogens, placing ultraviolet radiation in the same category as tobacco use (World Health Organization, 2012 ). Yet, tanning behaviors are prevalent among many young adults and adolescents causing them to be at increased risk of skin cancer, particularly with indoor tanning devices (Boniol et al. 2012 ; Lostritto et al. 2012 ). Studies of motives for tanning among these populations suggest that greater tanning behavior, for both genders, is correlated with high investment in appearance, media influences, and the influence of friends and significant others (Prior et al. 2014 ). Frequent tanning behaviors in adolescent boys have been related to extreme weight control, substance use, and victimization (Blashill 2013 ). Among young adults, Yoo and Kim ( 2014 ) identified three attitudes toward tanning that were related to tanning behaviors. The attitude that tanning was a pleasurable activity influenced indoor and outdoor tanning behaviors. The attitude that a tan enhances physical attractiveness influenced use of tanning beds and sunless tanning products. The attitude that tanning is a healthy behavior influenced outdoor tanning. They advised that tanning behaviors could be studied further particularly in relation to other risky behaviors.

Body talk and the self

A relatively recent line of investigation concerns the impact of talk about the body on perceptions of self. One would think that communication among friends would typically strengthen feelings of self-esteem and psychological well-being (Knickmeyer et al. 2002 ). Yet, certain types of communication, such as complaining about one’s body or appearance, may negatively impact feelings about the self (Tucker et al. 2007 ), particularly in the case of “fat talk” or disparaging comments about body size, weight, and fear of becoming fat (Ousley et al. 2008 ; Warren et al. 2012 ). Such fat talk has become normative behavior among women and, according to one study, occurs in over 90% of women (Salk & Engeln-Maddox 2011 ) and, according to another study, occurs in women of all ages and body sizes (Martz et al. 2009 ) because women feel pressure to be self-critical about their bodies. More women than men reported exposure to fat talk in their circle of friends and acquaintances and greater pressure to engage in it (Salk & Engeln-Maddox). Thus, fat talk extends body dissatisfaction into interpersonal relationships (Arroyo & Harwood 2012 ).

Sladek et al. ( 2014 ) reported a series of studies that elaborated on the investigation of body talk among men, concluding that men’s body talk has two distinct aspects, one related to weight and the other to muscularity. After developing a scale that showed strong test-retest reliability among college men, they found that body talk about muscularity was associated with dissatisfaction with the upper body, strong drive for muscularity, symptoms of muscle dysmorphia, and investment in appearance. Body talk about weight was associated with upper body dissatisfaction, symptoms of muscle dysmorphia, and disordered eating attitudes and behaviors. They suggest future research in body talk conversations among men and boys of all ages, from different cultural backgrounds, and in different contexts.

Negative body talk among men appears to be less straightforward than that among women (Engeln et al. 2013 ). These researchers reported that men’s body talk included both positive elements and negative elements, while that of women tended to focus on the negative, perhaps reflecting an accepting body culture among men in which they can praise one another as well as commiserate with other men on issues regarding muscularity and weight. Yet, both muscle talk and fat talk were found to decrease state appearance self-esteem and to increase state body dissatisfaction among men.

While the fat talk literature clearly establishes the normative occurrence of this type of communication, as well as establishes the negative impact on the self, the literature has not delved into theoretical explanations for its existence. Arroyo ( 2014 ) has posited a relationship between fat talk and three body image theories (self-discrepancy, social comparison, and objectification), and suggested that degree of body dissatisfaction could serve as a mediating mechanism. Self-discrepancy theory suggests that the discrepancy between one’s actual self and one’s ideal self on any variable, such as weight or attractiveness, motivates people to try to achieve that ideal (Jacobi & Cash 1994 ). Social comparison theory (Festinger 1954 ) explains that we compare ourselves to others on some variable of comparison. When we compare ourselves to others who we believe to be better than ourselves (upward comparison) on this variable (say, for example, thinner or more attractive), we may feel worse about ourselves and engage in both non-risky and risky behaviors such as extreme weight control to try to meet those expectations (Ridolfi et al. 2011 ; Rudd & Lennon 1994 ). Objectification theory, as mentioned earlier in this paper, states that bodies are treated as objects to be evaluated and perceived by others (Szymanski et al. 2011 ); self-objectification occurs when individuals look upon themselves as objects to be evaluated by others.

Arroyo ( 2014 ) surveyed 201 college women to see what effect weight discrepancy, upward comparison, and objectified body consciousness had on fat talk; a mediating variable of body dissatisfaction was investigated. She found that how satisfied or dissatisfied the women did indeed impact how they felt about each variable. Each of the three predictor variables was positively associated with body dissatisfaction and higher body dissatisfaction predicted fat talk. She concluded that fat talk is more insidious than other social behaviors; it is a type of communication that perpetuates negative perceptions among women as well as the attitude that women should be dissatisfied with their bodies. Future research suggestions included examining the impact of downward social comparisons (in which the individual assumes they fare better than peers on the variables of comparison, such as weight), and examining all three phenomena of self-discrepancy, social comparison, and objectification together to determine their cumulative impact on self-disparaging talk.

Negative body talk or fat talk is related to perceptions about the self and to appearance-management behaviors in presenting the self to others. In a sample of 203 young adult women, negative body talk was related to body dissatisfaction and poor self-esteem, and was associated with stronger investment in appearance, distorted thoughts about the body, disordered eating behavior, and depression (Rudiger & Winstead 2013 ). Positive body talk was related to fewer cognitive distortions of the body, high body satisfaction, high self-esteem, and friendship quality. Another form of body talk, co-rumination or the mutual sharing between friends of negative thoughts and feelings, is thought to intensify the impact of body talk. In this same study, co-rumination was related to frequent cognitive distortions of the body as well as disordered eating behaviors, but to high perceived friendship quality. Thus, negative body talk achieved no positive outcomes, yet co-rumination achieved negative outcomes for the self, but positive outcomes for quality of friendship. Thus, future research could tease apart the specific components of the social phenomenon of co-rumination in relation to self-perceptions and appearance management behaviors.

Dress and self as distinct from others

Shifting attention from relationships between the body and self, we move to a discussion of relationships between dress and that aspect of the self that is concerned with answering questions about who we are as distinct and unique individuals (e.g., what type of person am I?). Earlier we shared research about how wearing certain article of dress might impact one’s own physical behaviors. We shift now to sharing research addressing the role dress might play in thinking about oneself as a unique and distinct individual (i.e., self-perceptions). Researchers addressing this topic have utilized Bem’s ( 1972 ) self-perception theory. Bem proposed that similar to the processes we use in forming inferences about others, we can form inferences about ourselves. Bem argues that people’s understanding of their own traits was, in some circumstances, an assessment of their own behaviors. This process was proposed to be particularly relevant to individuals who were responsive to self-produced cues (i.e., cues that arise from an individual’s own behavior or characteristics).

In the 1980s, Kellerman and Laird ( 1982 ) utilized self-perception theory to see whether wearing a specific item of dress (e.g., eye glasses) would influence peoples’ ratings of their own skills and abilities. They conducted an experiment with undergraduate students having them rate themselves on an array of traits when wearing and when not wearing glasses and to complete a hidden figures test. Although there were no significant differences in their performance on the test, the participants’ ratings of their competence and intelligence was higher when wearing glasses than when not. In related research, Solomon and Schopler ( 1982 ) found that both men and women indicated that the appropriateness of their clothing affected their mood.

Studying dress specifically within a workplace context, in the 1990s Kwon ( 1994 ) did not have her participants actually wear different clothing styles but asked them to project how they might think about themselves if they were to wear appropriate versus inappropriate clothing to work. Participants indicated they would feel more competent and responsible if they wore appropriate rather than inappropriate clothing. Similarly, Rafaeli et al. ( 1997 ) a found that employees indicated a link between self-perception and clothing associating psychological discomfort with wearing inappropriate dress for work and increased social self-confidence with appropriate attire. Nearly ten years later, Adomaitis and Johnson ( 2005 ) in a study of flight attendants found that the attendants linked wearing casual uniforms for work (e.g., t-shirt, shorts) with negative self-perceptions (e.g., nonauthoritative, embarrassment, unconfident, unprofessional). Likewise, Peluchette and Karl ( 2007 ) investigating the impact of formal versus casual attire in the workplace found that their participants viewed themselves as most authoritative, trustworthy, productive and competent when wearing formal business attire but as friendliest when wearing casual or business casual attire. Continuing this line of research with individuals employed in the public sector, Karl et al. ( 2013 ) reported participants indicated they felt more competent and authoritative when in formal business or business casual attire and least creative and friendly when wearing casual dress.

As workplace dress has become casual, it would be useful for researchers to uncover any distinctions in casualness that make individuals feel more or less competent, respected, or authoritative. Another aspect of clothing that could be investigated is fit as it might impact self-perceptions or use of makeup.

Guy and Banim ( 2000 ) were interested in how clothing was used as means of self-presentation in everyday life. They implemented three strategies to meet their research objective of investigating women’s relationships to their clothing: a personal account, a clothing diary, and a wardrobe interview. The personal account was a written or tape recorded response to the question “what clothing means to me.” The clothing diary was a daily log kept for two weeks. The wardrobe interview was centered on participants’ current collection of clothing. Participants were undergraduates and professional women representing several age cohorts. The researchers identified three distinct perspectives of self relative to the women’s clothing. The first was labeled “the woman I want to be”. This category of responses revealed that the women used clothing to formulate positive self-projections. Favorite items of clothing in particular were identified as useful in bridging the gap between “self as you would like it to be” and the image actually achieved with the clothing. The second category of responses was labeled “the woman I fear I could be”. This category of responses reflected experiences where clothing had failed to achieve a desired look or resulted in a negative self-presentation. Concern here was choosing to wear clothing with unintentional effects such as highlighting parts of the body that were unflattering or concern about losing the ability to know how to dress to convey a positive image. The last category, “the woman I am most of the time” contained comments indicating the women had a “relationship with clothes was ongoing and dynamic and that a major source of enjoyment for them was to use clothes to realize different aspects of themselves” (p. 321).

Interested in how the self shaped clothing consumption and use, Ogle et al. ( 2013 ) utilized Guy and Banim’s ( 2000 ) views of self to explore how consumption of maternity dress might shape the self during a liminal life stage (i.e., pregnancy). Interviews with women expecting their first child revealed concerns that available maternity dress limited their ability to express their true selves. Some expressed concern that the maternity clothing that was available to them in the marketplace symbolized someone that they did not want to associate with (i.e., the woman I fear I could be). Several women noted they borrowed or purchased used clothing from a variety of sources for this time in their life. This decision resulted in dissatisfaction because the items were not reflective of their selves and if worn resulted in their projecting a self that they also did not want to be. In addition, the women shared that they used dress to confirm their selves as pregnant and as NOT overweight. While some of the participants did experience a disrupted sense of self during pregnancy, others shared that they were able to locate items of dress that symbolized a self-consistent with “the woman I am most of the time”.

Continuing in this line of research, researchers may want to explore these three aspects of self with others who struggle with self-presentation via dress as a result of a lack of fashionable and trendy clothing in the marketplace. Plus-sized women frequently report that they are ignored by the fashion industry and existing offerings fail to meet their need to be fashionable. A recent article in the Huffington Post (“Plus-sized clothing”, 2013 ) noted that retailers do not typically carry plus sizes perhaps due to the misconception that plus-sized women are not trendy shoppers or the idea that these sizes will not sell well. Thus, it may well be that the relationship between dress and self for plus-sized women is frustrating as they are prevented from being able to make clothing choices indicative of their selves “as they would like them to be”.

Priming and self-perception

While several researchers have confirmed that clothing worn impacts thoughts about the self, Hannover and Kühnen ( 2002 ) were interested in uncovering processes that would explain why clothing could have this effect. They began with examining what role priming might have in explaining how clothing impacts self-perceptions. Using findings from social cognition, they argued that clothing styles might prime specific mental categories about one’s self such that those categories that are most easily accessed in a given situation would be more likely to be applied to oneself than categories of information that are difficult to access. Thus, if clothing can be used to prime specific self-knowledge it should impact self-descriptions such that, a person wearing “casual” clothing (e.g., jeans, sweatshirt) should be more apt to describe him or herself using casual terms (e.g., laid-back, uses slang). The researchers had each participant stand in front of a mirror and indicate whether or not specific traits were descriptive of him or herself when wearing either casual or formal clothing (e.g., business attire). The researchers found that when a participant wore casual clothing he or she rated the casual traits as more valid self-descriptions than the formal traits. The reverse was also true. They concluded that the clothing worn primed specific categories of self-knowledge. However, the researchers did not ask participants to what extent they intentionally considered their own clothing when determining whether or not a trait should be applied to them. Yet, as previously noted, Adam and Galinsky ( 2012 ) demonstrated that clothing impacted a specific behavior (attention) only in circumstances where the clothing was worn and the clothing’s meaning was clear. Thus, researchers could test if clothing serves as an unrecognized priming source and if its impact on impression formation is less intentional than typically assumed.

Dress and self in interaction with others

Another area of research within dress and the self involves experience with others and the establishment of meaning. Questions that these researchers are interested in answering include what is the meaning of an item of dress or a way of appearing? Early researchers working in this area have utilized symbolic interactionism as a framework for their research (Blumer 1969 ; Mead 1934 ; Stone 1962 ). The foundational question of symbolic interaction is: “What common set of symbols and understandings has emerged to give meaning to people’s interactions?” (Patton 2002 , p. 112).

There are three basic premises central to symbolic interactionism (Blumer 1969 ). The first premise is that our behavior toward things (e.g., physical objects, other people) is shaped by the meaning that those things have for us. Applied to dress and appearance, this premise means that our behavior relative to another person is influenced by that person’s dress (Kaiser 1997 ) and the meaning that we assign to that dress. The second premise of symbolic interaction is that the meaning of things is derived from social interaction with others (Blumer). This premise indicates that meanings are not inherent in objects, must be shared between individuals, and that meanings are learned. The third premise is that meanings are modified by a continuous interpretative process in which the actor interacts with himself (Blumer). As applied to clothing, this premise suggests that the wearer of an outfit or item of clothing is active in determining the meaning of an item along with the viewer of that item.

Symbolic interactionism posits that the self is a social construction established, maintained, and altered through interpersonal communication with others. While initial work focused on investigating verbal communication as key to the construction of the self, Stone extended communication to include appearance and maintained that “appearance is at least as important in establishment and maintenance of the self” as verbal communication (1962, p. 87).

Stone ( 1962 ) discussed a process of establishing the self in interaction with others. This process included selecting items of dress to communicate a desired aspect of self (i.e., identity) as well as to convey that desired aspect to others. One stage in this process is an individual’s review of his/her own appearance. This evaluation and response to one’s own appearance is called program. One might experience a program by looking in the mirror to assess whether the intended identity expressed through dress is the one that is actually achieved. After this evaluation of one’s appearance, the next stage involves others reacting to an individual’s appearance. This is called a review. Stone contends that when “programs and reviews coincide, the self of the one who appears is validated or established” (p. 92). However, when programs and reviews do not coincide, the announced identity is challenged and “conduct may be expected to move in the direction of some redefinition of the challenged self” (p. 92).

Researchers using this approach in their investigations of dress have used Stone’s ( 1962 ) ideas and applied the concept of review to the experiences of sorority women. Hunt and Miller ( 1997 ) interviewed sorority members about their experiences with using dress to communicate their membership and how members, via their reviews, shaped their sorority appearances. Members reported using several techniques in the review of the appearance of other members as well as in response to their own appearance (i.e., programs). Thus, the researcher’s results supported Stone’s ideas concerning establishment of an identity (as an aspect of self) as a process of program and review.

In an investigation of the meaning of dress, in this instance the meaning of a specific body modification—a tattoo, Mun et al. ( 2012 ) interviewed women of various ages who had tattoos to assess meanings, changes in self-perceptions as a result of the tattoo, and any changes in the women’s behavior as an outcome of being tattooed. To guide their inquiry, the researchers used Goffman’s ( 1959 ) discussion of the concept of self-presentation from his seminal work The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life . According to Goffman, on a regular basis people make inferences about the motivations that underlie other people’s behaviors. To make these inferences they use everyday details. Because most people make these inferences, Goffman believed that individuals could purposely control the content of those inferences by controlling their behavior. Included in this behavior was an individual’s dress. These researchers found support for Goffman’s reasoning. Participants shared that their tattoo(s) had meaning and were expressive of their selves, their personal values and interests, important life events (e.g., marriage), and religious/sacred beliefs. The meaning of a tattoo was also dynamic for several participants rather than static. Participants’ self-perceptions were impacted as a result of being tattooed with several participants sharing increases to their confidence and to their perceived empowerment. Individuals who shared a change in behavior primarily noted that they controlled the visibility of their tattoos to others as a method to control how others might respond to them having a tattoo especially within the workplace.

Since an array of body modifications (e.g., piercings, gauging, scarification) are being adopted cross-culturally, investigations of people’s experiences with any of these modifications is fertile area for future researchers interested in the meaning(s) of dress and how dress impacts the self through interaction with others. Researchers may want to investigate men’s experiences with piercing/gauging as well as women’s experiences with body building and other developing forms of body modification. Extreme forms of body piercings (e.g., piercings that simulate corset lacings) and underlying motivations for these body modifications would add to our understanding of relationships between dress and self. The meanings of facial hair to men or body hair removal (partial, total) for both men and women are additional aspects of dress that could be investigated.

Dress and self as influence on consumption

In the aforementioned research by Ogle et al. ( 2013 ), the researchers found that a primary reason their participants were disappointed by the maternity clothing offered through the marketplace was due to a lack of fit between their selves and the clothing styles made available. Thus, it is clear that ideas about the self impact clothing selection and purchase. Sirgy ( 1982 ) proposed self-image product-image congruity theory to describe the process of how people applied ideas concerning the self to their purchasing. The basic assumption of the theory is that through marketing and branding, products gain associated images. The premise of the theory is that products people are motivated to purchase are products with images that are congruent with or symbolic of how they see themselves (i.e., actual self-image) or with how they would like to be (i.e., ideal self-image). They also will avoid those products that symbolize images that are inconsistent with either of these self-images.

Rhee and Johnson ( 2012 ) found support for the self-image product-image congruity relationship with male and female adolescents. These researchers investigated the adolescents’ purchase and use of clothing brands. Participants indicated their favorite apparel brand was most similar to their actual self (i.e., this brand reflects who I am), followed by their social self (i.e., this brand reflects who I want others to think I am), and their desired self (i.e., this brand reflects who I want to be).

Earlier, Banister and Hogg ( 2004 ) conducted research investigating the idea that consumers will actively reject or avoid products with negative symbolic meanings. The researchers conducted group interviews with adult consumers. Their participants acknowledged that clothing items could symbolize more than one meaning depending on who was interpreting the meaning. They also acknowledged that the consumers they interviewed appeared to be more concerned with avoiding consumption of products with negative symbolic images than with consuming products with the goal of achieving a positive image. One participant noted that while attempts to achieve a positive image via clothing consumption may be sub-conscious, the desire to avoid a negative image when shopping was conscious.

Closing remarks

It is clear from our review that interest in the topic of the social psychology of dress is on-going and provides a fruitful area of research that addresses both basic and applied research questions. Although we provided an overview of several key research areas within the topic of the social psychology of dress we were unable to include all of the interesting topics being investigated. There are other important areas of research including relationships between dress and specific social and cultural identities, answering questions about how dress functions within social groups, how we learn to attach meanings to dress, and changing attitudes concerning dress among others. Regardless, we hope that this review inspires both colleagues and students to continue to investigate and document the important influence dress exerts in everyday life.

a These researchers used role theory to frame their investigation.

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117 Awesome Fashion Research Topics: Inspirational Ideas List

Finding some decent fashion research topics that you can use for your next papers is not easy nowadays. You want something new, something original. Your classmates are probably scouring the Internet as we speak, so why are you still wasting time? Take a look at our long list of 117 exceptional fashion research topics and choose the best one right now.

What makes our topics different, you ask? Our experts are constantly updating the list and adding new ideas. This means you will always be able to find an original idea here on this page. We will soon be adding new topics for 2023, so stay tuned!

What Is The Fashion Research Paper?

Keep in mind that finding some great fashion topics to write about is not enough. You need to be able to create a well-organized, concise research paper. To help you do just that, we will show you the 8 main parts of a research paper:

Title page (or cover page) Start with a hook to catch the attention of your readers, then talk a bit about the background of the problem and present your thesis. Literature review. Here, you will need to demonstrate that you have analyzed the literature related to the topic and that there is a gap in knowledge that needs to be addressed. Research In this section, you will explain in great detail all the methods you have used to gather the data. Be as specific as possible. Data analysis. This is the section where you present and analyze the data. Be objective and avoid discussing the results. This is the section where you can discuss your findings and prove how your research results back your thesis. Don’t forget to acknowledge the limitations of your research. Restate your thesis and summarize your research and findings. Show your readers how your findings answer the research questions. References page. This is where you list all the resources you have used to write your research Make sure you don’t miss any.

Now that you know the overall structure of a research paper, it’s time to give you some excellent topics to write about:

Brand New Fashion Research Paper Topics

We will start our list with the brand new fashion research paper topics. These have been added to the list recently, so you can pick one right now knowing that it’s original:

Fashion in Ancient Rome
The impact of Jane Austen on the world of fashion
Swimwear in the 1980s
Using bizarre colors in fashion
The rise and fall of the jeans
Peer pressure related to fashion trends
Social networking and fashion
The life and work of Giorgio Armani
Talk about hippie fashion
Fashion in Islamic religions

Interesting Fashion Topics To Write About

If you are looking for something out of the ordinary, we have a long list of interesting fashion topics to write about. Take a look at the following ideas:

The rise of the Chanel brand
Does price reflect quality?
Fashion in Ancient Egypt
The sense of fashion in women
The link between art and fashion
Discuss ethics in fashion
The relationship between style and money
The role of clothes in your culture
Interesting fashion hacks

Fashion Research Topics 2023

In the fashion research topics 2023, you can find topics that were greatly appreciated in 2023. These may or may not be as appreciated in 2024 though:

Fashion in developing countries
Research smart casual fashion
Compare Asian fashion with American fashion
Fashion and aesthetics
Marketing a new brand of clothes
Fashion in vlogging
What are cycles in fashion?
The rise of the Versace empire
Fashion in Paris

Advanced Fashion Topics To Discuss

We also have a list of more advanced fashion topics to discuss. Just keep in mind that the following topics are not easy to write about. But as an option, you can buy a dissertation on any topic.

Negative effects of fashion on the environment
Forecasting new trends in 2023
Celebrities and fashion
Negative effects of fashion on the human psychology
Influencer marketing of fashion products
Fashion from a religious standpoint
The place of leather in fashion in 2023
Largest fashion shows in the world
The importance of Fashion Weeks in Eastern Europe

Fun Research Topics On Fashion

Who said a research paper can’t be fun? Choose one of these fun research topics on fashion and start writing the perfect paper today:

Fashion in 1990s media
Funny fashion mishaps
Men in fashion advertisements/commercials
Fashion in medieval times
Crossover fashion in 2023
Can you start a fashion business?
Fashion in the royal family (the UK)
Fashion and school uniforms

Important People In Fashion

One of the easiest ways to write a research paper in the field of fashion is to research an icon. Here are some important people in a fashion that you can talk about:

Karl Lagerfeld
Stella McCartney
Audrey Hepburn
David Bowie
Princess Diana
Charles Frederick Worth
Harry Styles
Kim Taehyung
Coco Chanel
Designer Paul Poiret

Fashion Research Paper Topics For High School

If you are a high school student, you need some easier topics to write on. Check out these fashion research paper topics for high school and pick the one you like:

Fashion in Ancient Egyptian times
Michael Jackson’s fashion
Fashion in Western Europe
Fashion at the workplace
Fashion in schools in the UK
Discuss fashion in North Korea
Luxury products and the human brain
Fashion trends and the science that explains them

Captivating Fashion Design Research Paper Topics

In case you want to discuss fashion design, we have a nice list of captivating fashion design research paper topics right here. All these topics are, of course, 100% free to use:

Fashion in the LGBTQ community
Fashion in Nazi Germany
Fun facts about beachwear
The role of Versace in fashion
New York as a fashion center
Effects of Tik-Tok on fashion
The origins of ethnic clothing
Mixing 3 styles the right way
Fashion and sexism in 2023

Fast Fashion Research Paper Topics

Don’t want to spend a lot of time working on that research paper? No problem! Simply choose one of these fast fashion research paper topics:

The role of politics in fashion in the United States
Talk about wedding ceremony fashion
Talk about trends in baby clothing in the United Kingdom
The role celebrities play in fashion marketing
Talk about 3 iconic fashion characters
An in-depth look at fashion in the punk world

Fashion Topics To Research In 2023

It’s time to think about the topics that should work great in 2023. In fact, our experts have already compiled a list of fashion topics to research in 2023:

Talk about the notion of “invisible branding” in fashion
Research women’s fashion in the 1980s
The role played by art in fashion trends
Research 3 major fashion companies
Talk about the low rise fashion trend
Discuss the women’s oversized bomber jackets trend

Fashion And Marketing Research Topics

As you probably know, fashion and marketing go hand in hand. Take a look at our latest and most interesting fashion and marketing research topics right here:

Fashion marketing on social media
Fashion marketing in the 1960s
Effective marketing strategies for luxury products
Style vs. functionality in marketing
Marketing and fashion cycles
The role of fashion in TV commercials

Fashion Ideas For College Students

College students should research topics that are more complex in nature. Don’t worry though; we have more than enough fashion ideas for college students:

Research the hoodies under blazers fashion trend
Compare Asian and European fashion
Research Jane Austen’s style
A closer look at minimalist fashion
The beginning of the Haute Couture
Fashion and the Internet

Unique Ideas Related To Fashion

This list of topics has been revised recently to make sure all ideas are unique. So, if you’re looking for unique ideas related to fashion, you have definitely arrived at the right place:

Analyze the cropped cardigans trend
Research the plus-size fashion industry in Indonesia
The impact of feminism on fashion
Social issues caused by fashion
Fashion and cheap labor
Effects of religion on fashion

Easy Fashion Essay Topics

If you want to make sure you ace that research paper, you should find an easy topic to talk about. Take a look at these easy fashion essay topics and pick one today:

Discuss the notion of “color blocking”
Fashion trends during World War II
The evolution of men’s suits over the last 100 years
Fashion and child labor
What is organic clothing?
Talk about the rise of wig fashion

Creative Fashion Research Questions

Professors really appreciate creativity, so you should definitely go through this list of creative fashion research questions:

A closer look at the puff sleeves trend
The Kardashian family’s impact on fashion
How did Chanel rise to fame?
Sustainability in the fashion industry
Fashion and body types
Interesting fashion trends in Dubai
Talk about fashion in the armed forces

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286 Fashion Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

Looking for hot fashion essay topics? The fashion industry is really important, controversial, and exciting. It is definitely worth studying!

🏆 Top 10 Fashion Essay Topics

💃 fashion essay examples & topic ideas, 🥇 controversial fashion topics to write about, 🎓 hot fashion essay topics, ⭐ fashion argumentative essay topics, 💡 most interesting fashion topics to write about, ✅ simple & easy fashion essay titles, ❓ fashion essay questions.

Our article will inspire you whether you want to write an argumentative essay about fashion history or a persuasive paper about modern fashion. Here you’ll find a huge list of fashion topics to discuss and write about, outlining tips, and excellent fashion essay examples. Enjoy!

Fashion as a form of self-expression
History of Western fashion
National differences in fashion
The role of technologies in fashion industry
Fashion industry and its key sectors
Fashion trends: causes and effects
Fashion as a social phenomenon
Market research in fashion: the main methods
Politics and fashion
Fashion blogs as a marketing channel
Essay about Clothes and Personality In addition to this, it is not difficult to notice that Field had a good idea about fashion and personality based on the outfits and make up for her characters.
Fashion Clothing Company’s Financial Statements The opening statement of financial position helps to identify capital intensity, the availability of cash to run the business, assets, and the tools available for the firm to continue smoothly.
Zara Fashion Retailer’s Organizational Change Although this report has mentioned many areas within Zara’s operational and human resource strategies that need redirection as a direct consequence of the ever-shifting business environment, it lays its focus on how the fashion retailer […]
Supply Chain Management in the Fashion Industry This paper is also aimed at mapping out Louis Vuitton’s supply chain, at identifying and making recommendations for addressing the most significant problems in the management of Louis Vuitton supply chain, and calculating the losses […]
Zara Fashion Retailer: Brand Awareness and Loyalty Discussion: This chapter of this study will organise considering the research question, such as it will describe Zara’s marketing strategies to develop brand awareness and customer loyalty; Conclusions: Finally, the chapter six will scrutinise all […]
Fashion and Identity Werner continues to argue that the contemporary generation is deceived to think that personal identity is determined by the physical attributes in a person.
Fashion Advertising and Its Influences on People A study on the fashion advertising processes and their influences on people will help to understand some of the impacts created by increased advertising.
Successful Advertising in Fashion This essay looks at advertising in fashion and some of the ways used to make advertising in fashion successful. It suffices to mention that scholars have created a link between advertising in fashion and the […]
Fast Fashion and Sustainability This paper includes a brief analysis of the ways to address consumers’ fashion-related needs and reduce the negative environmental impact of the fast industry.
Valentino Clemente Ludovico Garavani: Fashion Philosophy The shift that occurred in the fashion industry toward Italy and designing dresses for movie stars and celebrities linked his name with luxury style and opulence.
The Impact of Fashion Marketing on Culture The primary aim of this study is to investigate the impact of fashion marketing, specifically in the clothing sector, on culture.
Fashion Clothing Designs: The Golden Mean Ratio The concept of the golden ratio has achieved uniqueness and becomes a fascinating exercise in mathematics because the ratio appears in several elements and creations, such as the human body and face.
Fashion in the Period of Modernism The main content of the Modern was the desire of artists to contrast their creativity with the historicism and eclecticism of art of the second half of the XIX century.
The 18th Century Children’s Clothing in England With that background in mind, this paper shall discus the characteristics of girls’ and boys’ dresses in the eighteenth century as well as the similarities between the dresses of both sexes.
Motivation in Fashion Industry As a student set to join the industry in the future, my dream is to be the best designer and prioritize the needs of my customers.
Fashion in Society: School Uniforms and Self-Expression The use of school uniforms can actually enhance a child’s personal character development as “such requirements of standardized dress also include a symbolic rhetoric of legitimate authority, a reservoir of institutional and organizational values of […]
1990s Fashion: A Challenge of the Decade From a more consuming and conspicuous style of the 1980s, a more defined and individualized style of dressing and composing oneself emerged in the succeeding decade.
Avant-Garde Fashion: The History of Modernism and How It Changed the World One of the main reasons why this particular movement resists the main fashion trends is that the garments are abundant with black color, the combination of leather and cotton, and multiple layers.
Fashion Design and Famous Designers His character narrative is about the blend of the past and the present as he tries to make his collections more relevant.
The Effects of the Fast Fashion Industry on the World This led to the creation of shops that made garments to meet the needs of such a category of people in the community.
The Characteristics of the Fashion Industry and How They Influence Supply Chain The fashion industry thrives on the efforts of retailers who mostly take up the role of supply, sales and merchandising of products to the consumers.
Fast Fashion Brand Advantages and Risks in Chinese Market The paper also looked at the risks that the fast fashion brand has to face in the Chinese market and ways in which these risks can be managed to help the organisations consolidate its advantages.
Fashion and Cinema: “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” According to Veblen, the aforementioned perspective as displayed in the fashion aspects of the movie indicates that the leisurely class uses dressing to express their way of life and social phenomenon.
Fashion Sociology In the view of evolution of fashions and clothing, the modern society is shaping its identity by allowing unique members in the society to have freedom of exercising their values and beliefs in relation to […]
How Companies Can Successfully Enter The French Fashion Industry Currently, the fashion industry is one of the economic sectors that are experiencing an increment in the rate of competition. This means that there is a high probability of the firms becoming established in the […]
Fashion and individual identity This fact makes the clothes a reflection of the person, which is why the choice of fashion is taken to represent personal identity.
Fashion and Reasons to Love It The second reason for me to love bags is that my bag is a very important part of my image. The second reason why I love hats is that it adds a touch of elegance […]
Paris Fashion Design: Christian Dior Brand It was the brand that made women return to the concept of femininity in the middle of the twentieth century. In the 1970, the brand evolved to adjust to the changes in the society.
UK Fashion Industry: ASOS Marketing Campaign The success of the re-launch of the modified products will greatly depend on a proper understanding of the internal and external factors that would impact the marketing campaign of ASOS.
Teen Fashion Advertisement From magazines, to the television, to the internet, to the billboards; there is almost no limit to the ways in which teenagers are exposed to fashion advertisements.
Bahrain Fashion: Culture and Antiquities The main purpose of the paper is to provide the information regarding the cultural and historical peculiarities of the country with the relation to the Bahrain fashion.
Fashion Goes Round in Circles In the 2000s, the generation involved in arts and fashion looked back to the past decades for greater inspiration, and it was able to keep new fashions.
Sandro Fashion Brand The company began in the Marais district of Paris and focused primarily on women’s fashion. In 2009, the company acquired fashion brand Claudie Pierlot in preparation for the creation of the SMCP group in 2010.
Generational Trends in Fashion Although the development of the present-day generation of young people should be discussed as the complex phenomenon, it is possible to focus on analyzing fashion, technology, and parenting skills as the most remarkable elements which […]
Blogging about Fashion The blogs, as Huang, Chou, and Lin note, allows for individuals with common interest to come together to share information and ideas, as well as to gain knowledge from other members of the virtual community, […]
Men’s Fashion and Shopping Habits Associating a brand with a powerful personality is however a strategy that has been adopted by many marketers in the past and that is why some of the major world brands like Sean John and […]
Eco-Friendly and Sustainable Fashion In this paper, the aim is to discuss the eco-friendly and sustainable practices in the fashion industry and forces that may affect the efforts of the stakeholders in this industry as they try to embrace […]
The Fashion Channel Marketing Plan The firm needs to effect radical marketing strategies to help it increase the value of its service in the market. This approach will help TFC increase the ratings of its products to make it more […]
Fashion Capitals of the World The fashion industry is a dynamic industry, which is a product of history and ‘an objective term that depends on context to give it its emotional qualities.’ For a long period of time, Paris and […]
Fashion as the Avatar of an Avant-garde In the discussion that follows, the links between fashion and art will be explored, the potential for fashion to represent the Avant-Garde will be addressed, and the specific case of Viktor and Rolf will be […]
Analysis of Simone Rocha Fashion Designs The designs are inclusive and relate to women’s outer beauty as they bring out a sense of femininity in terms of skin tones, freckles, and skin lines.
70’s Fashion as a Freedom of Choice However, with the end of the Vietnam War, the public and the media lost interest in the hippie style in the middle of the decade, and began to lean toward the mod subculture. The 70’s […]
Cultural Borrowing: Ethnic Fashion Obscures Cultural Identity I write this article from the larger perspective of what kind of cultural items can be borrowed and the benefits of the same and at the same time the tendency to obviate the subtext.
Gucci Luxury Fashion Brand Bizzarri describes the reinvention of the brand as the renovation of its image in the effort to recapture “the spirit of innovation” and redefine the notion of luxury.
Fashion as an Integral Aspect of Modern Culture: Identity Importance In this paper, we will aim to substantiate the full validity of an earlier articulated thesis, while exposing the concept of fashion as such that derives out of the notion of progress, which in its […]
Fashion History’s Understanding Fashion distinct classes of people in the society where complex and sophisticated fashion is related with the rich and modernity. Tailors, dressmakers, and designers have contributed to the increased trend in change of fashion.
Fashion Consumerism and Its Negative Effects The fashion industry is one of the fields that is consumerism saturated the most. It is clear that the COVID-19 pandemic caused another wave of consumerism in fashion because people felt alone and bored.
“Fashion Cycle” of Louis Vuitton Most of the products sold by Louis Vuitton go through the five stages of the fashion cycle, and the company has to use different strategies.
Just in Time: Management Operations in the Fast Fashion Industry Sourcing is implemented using the famous lean or Just in Time (JIT) models. This means that required materials are acquired and delivered whenever they are needed.
Art Deco: Fashion Merchandising The model on this picture is wearing a fur trim jacket from Bisou Bisou that has been clearly influenced by the fashion of 20’s.
ASOS Fashion Company’s Market Entry Into Dubai The purpose of the report is to highlight the appropriate market entry strategy for ASOS in Dubai. The report considers the business, industry, and consumer factors affecting the suitability of the business location.
Careers in the Fashion Industry The duty of a manufacturer’s representative in the sphere of fashion is to market and sell the lines of clothes. In conclusion, all of the careers selected for this paper include a lot of responsibilities […]
Zara and Benetton Fashion Companies Management The company’s strategy is to increase its sales to diverse parts of the globe. The utilization of a network of local subcontractors proficient in different fields such as knitting and sewing contributed appreciably to its […]
Key Success Factors of the Global Online Fashion Business This research proposal will seek to attain the following objectives at the end of the study: Identify both external and internal factors that influence fashion industry Identify ethical issues affecting the industry and its sustainability […]
Cristobal Balenciaga and His Significant Impact on Fashion Cristobal Balenciaga is one of the designers whose work had a significant influence on the designers of his time as well as the modern designers.
Is Fashion a Product of Modernism? The purpose of this study is to trace the development of fashion in the context of modernism. The disappearance of opulent Victorian dresses and close attention to the functionality of clothes attests the major change […]
History of Fashion Merchandising This is in lieu of the fact that the demand for technical skills will continue to grow in future and in an unprecedented way.
How the Internet Has Transformed Design & Fashion? Lastly and more importantly, the advent of internet has seen to it that there is increased reliability bas well as convenience in online shopping for fashion and design.
Fashion and Architecture: Relationship The paper goes ahead and gives view of the positive aspects and negative aspects of the relationship of the field in view of the current, past and possible future trends. Areas of similarities between architecture […]
Fashion Industry and Vera Wang The fashion industry is one of the most rapidly growing industries in the world. The lack of fashion and good designs in the bridal wears forced her to bring new designs to the bridal industry.
Fashion Advertising Impact on Social Identity The concept of social identity in modern society is increasingly becoming important in a global society as people try to identify with specific cultures and practices.
Luxury Fashion Market and Ethics This thus leads to the question, is being ethical crucial for the survival of luxury fashion brands in the market? From the discussion above, ethics is a must have tool for luxury fashion brands to […]
Fashion Source of Inspiration It needs to be said that experimentation is a critical part of the process, and some colors may have to be slightly changed.
Internal and External Influences on Program-Level Curriculum Development in Higher Education Fashion Merchandising Programs This study aims to identify the internal and external factors that influence the inclusion of STEM education in curriculums for higher education fashion merchandizing courses.
Socio-Economic Future of Fashion Industry Hence, in order to minimize the negative impact of this problem on the world, fashion experts encourage people to export used clothes to others with the help of second-hand markets.
T-Shirt as a Fashion Statement with Emotional Expression Painted in the National Day colors and being extraordinary comfortable, the T-shirts by Lowman Fashion Enterprises are bound to become an important part of celebrating the holiday and reminding people about the importance of unity.
Harry Winston Fashion Brand and Its Evolution Harry Winston Diamond Corporation was founded in the year 1932 and is headquartered in New York. Harry Winston has remained a powerful brand in the global jewelry industry.
Zara apparel fashion Store Zara used in-house designers to supply new products to the market twice a week to customers in response to the sales and fashion trends.
Fashion Controversies about Hip Hop Garments The paper will look into controversy that arose over hip hop garment design with the aim of identifying the source of the controversy, key players in the controversy as well as political, social and economic […]
Fast Fashion’s Negative Impact on the Environment And this is the constant increase in production capacity, the low quality of the product, and the use of the labor of the population of developing countries.
The Fashion Scholarship Fund Website Rhetoric Analysis There are also shared personal stories of alumni and other people who have benefitted from using the website before that, making one visit the website to feel a connection on the importance of the website.
How AI and Machine Learning Influence Marketing in the Fashion Industry As governments shut down factories, stores, and events to stop the transmission of the virus, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a tremendous impact on the worldwide fashion industry.
Zero Waste Fashion and Its Perception The ingenious sales strategy of the fashion industry has a devastating impact on the environment. Mannarino explains that unlike other industries such as manufacturing and transport that have attracted the attention of the governments and […]
Casual Fashion Trends Now vs. 60 Years Ago While this is a natural part of life, any kind of alteration can be rather frightening, as it usually means that every decade or era will inevitably become a part of the past, as opposed […]
How 40 to 50-Year-Old Irish Women Choose Fast Fashion and Why The replication of styles and the use of synthetic materials is meant to ensure that the product is made as affordable as possible while at the same time meeting the expectations of the market.
Fashion Impact on International Students in London The proposal looks at the personal experiences of a small group of international students living and studying in London, utilizing first-hand accounts of how they make sense of their university experiences abroad and integrate them […]
Native American Fashion Discussion Native American fashion collections aim to show respect and immortality of the indigenous culture; however, implementing the items in modern life is false memorization.
Generational Attitudes Toward Fashion Sustainability To explore generation Z and millennials’ attitudes and product expectations towards sustainability in the fashion market. To explore the overlap in fast fashion and sustainable fashion markets.
In America: A Lexicon of Fashion Exhibition The different installations operated back and forth in interesting ways throughout the show, and it was a highlight of the curators’ strategy.
Waste Management Sustainability in the UK Fashion Industry In spite of the presence of the overarching goal, the exact nature and direction of sustainable policies may vary across different contexts and regions of the globe.
3D Printing Development for Fashion Industry The fashion industry was not moved or altered by 3D printing during the earlier days because most of the inventions covered the need to modify and improve the printing capability.
Purchase of Fast Fashion Clothing and Ethical & Personal Values On the other hand, the emergence of the practice threatened the aesthetic value and ethical approach based on the utilization of the available facilities.
Vintage Fashion Styles Overview While there were many different trends in fashion during that time, this loose clothing is a major feature of the ’90s.
Discussion of Sustainability in Fashion In conclusion, the widespread problem of the usage of unsafe chemicals by the textile industry may well be avoided by including a precisely controlled and preventive strategy.
Sustainability in Fashion: Clothing Rental Services Having rented an outfit, you do not have to think about what to do with ten different dresses worn for girlfriends weddings or family dinners, because, as a rule, it is a pity to throw […]
Analysis of Major Fashion Trends and Their Perspective For this reason, this paper will look at such trends as the use of AI, sustainable fabrics and China’s e-commerce in fashion to predict their future development and impact on the fashion industry.
Is Fashion Destroying the Planet? Before starting a review of the documentary, I feel it is necessary to give a definition of sustainable fashion and establish a connection between the fashion industry and the environment.
The Fashion Industry: Discrimination Case To conclude, although the fashion industry seeks to contribute to cultural and ethnic sustainability, there are some issues that require discussion.
Voids in the Fashion Industry Performing a PEST Analysis of the fashion industry provided an opportunity to find specific voids in this market and think of the ways to fill them.
The PEST Analysis of the Fashion Industry The brands focusing exclusively on such products in demand during the summer or the winter as, for example, swimwear or parkas, have to account for the potential losses during an off-season.
Luxury Fashion and Digital Experience In addition, such a sequence of events causes the loss of exclusivity, which also prevents clients from sticking to this brand.
Counterculture Fashion: Patched Denim The presentation focuses on patches and their role in the counterculture fashion. Over the century, the significance and meaning of patches in fashion have evolved.
Fashion Forecasting and Trends There are a lot of spring tendencies that are widely awaited; however, the designers are most thrilled about the new bottom silhouette.
Versace Fall Winter 2021 Fashion Show Review Flipping the script for the fall 2021 season, the brand introduces its fanbase to a new discussion inside the Versace-verse, monogramming.
Changing the World Through Fashion: Eva Kruse at TEDxCopenhagen The speaker says that the solution to the problem of clothing sustainability lies in understanding the changing behavior of consumers and studying the essence of the fashion industry and brands.
Fashion Industry: The Role of Insiders In the fashion industry, the insiders imply that one should work hard to present to the world the best products. Sometimes one does not know how people will react to the content; the vital part […]
The Latest Fashion Trends and Financial Events A perfect publication for this news lede could be NewBeauty. This news lede is suitable for Esquire’s history of fashion publications.
Fashion: Studying Complexity of Industry However, most of them have a limited understanding of how the industry functions, its unique peculiarities, and laws that affect the cooperation between designers, models, photographers, and multiple roles people perform to create the basis […]
Red Color in Branding of McDonald’s and Christian Louboutin Fashion House The above examples of the use of color in brands are typical marketers’ techniques to draw attention to the brand and increase sales.
Brands’ Analysis in the Fashion Industry For the fashion industry, the ability to support the interest in a product or idea is one of the success factors.
Winter 2020 – 2021 Fashion Trends The following are the most recent winter and holiday fashion trends of 2021. The fashion world is rapidly shifting to the new era of jeans, forgetting skinny models and returning to the silhouettes of the […]
Pricing With Fashion Retailers The key to success in price setting and approaching customers more effectively is focusing on the transformation of non-transactional data into some analyzable form.
Examining Vintage Luxury Fashion The recent evidence demonstrates that the re-sale of high-quality clothing becomes especially demanded, and the market seems to increasingly offer the desired products.
Fast Fashion and Ethical Consumption A narrative literature review is selected to analyse and synthesise available information on the impact of fast fashion on society. The integration of articles is expected to reveal the gaps, tendencies, and limitations that exist […]
Analysis of Developing Fashion Trend Some of the ideas that shape fashion in the contemporary world are: This is an inspired theme that has emphasis on the significance of local values as one takes note and appreciates the moment.
Journal Entries: Advertising in Fashion The main argument is that advertising practitioners use an advertising imagery labelled the grotesque to generate narrative transportation for fashion consumers and also to assist in overcoming consumer resistance through fostering a more powerful experience […]
Legal Context of Fashion and Design: Trade Dress This is one of the strategies that can often be adopted by designers to defend their rights in court. This is one of the points that can be made.
Google Jumps Into Fashion E-Commerce In addition, the organizational strategy of the company is to find new ways of serving customers. It is important for managers to embrace information systems in order to achieve the corporate goal of a business […]
California Fashion Brand Juicy Couture Applications of this technique is appropriate, because the use of cheerful colors and an adorable design is a mode of igniting emotional and physical responses from its targeted audience hence, arousing in them the curiosity […]
Fashion Retail Trends In the modern age, traditional advertising is becoming obsolete, and distributors are forced to find new ways to connect with their audience.
20th Century Dress and Culture – Punk Fashion This firm has a large share market in the current fashion industry providing trendy products in clothes and shoes. Culture in fashion is essential in enhancing the social grievances of a discriminated group of population.
Child Labor in the Fast Fashion Industry To free girls from this choice and reduce the presence of kids in factories, it is necessary to combat poverty in rural areas actively.
Evolution of Clothes and Fashion in Twentieth Century The first half of the century was notable for the development of artistic movements, which contributed to the emergence of new elements in clothes.
“Management Fashion” by Abrahamson To be able to contribute effectively in the fashion setting process, scholars should internalize the knowledge that fashionable management approaches must appear both rational and progressive, management fashion should not be adopted due to sociopsychological […]
The History of the Fashion Industry: The Economy and Market Because of the significant numbers of the middle class, people are able to mold and shape the business and industry of fashion.
Fashion Industry’s Challenges & Negative Effects In this regard, average women are used to illustrating the beauty of the fashion products being displayed. This has significantly reduced the negative effects of the fashion industry on women.
The History of Corsets in the Context of Fashion History Corsets may be a perfect illustration of the expression ‘beauty has its price’, and ladies from the past centuries were willing to sacrifice the health in order to look beautiful and win attention.
Western Pop Culture and Street Fashion of Japanese Youth The research of the topic needs to be preceded by the explanation of the key subjects and notions used in the current paper.
Female Image in Alexander Wang Fashion Advertisement In the “Alexander Wang” fashion advertisement analyzed in this essay, the female image is exploited to create a provocative symbol which lacks the sexual self-empowerment of feminist ideology. The woman’s shirt is white, with the […]
Fur Coat as a Controversial Fashion Garment Proponents state that fur is fashionable and therefore it is the way to go in terms of new fashion designs. The proposed use of refurbished fur and synthetic materials.
The American Dandies and Fops History: Men With a Great Passion for Fashion, Style, and Art This paper delves into the 19th-century use of dandies and fops in the American fashion industry, how dandies and fops came to America, and their effects on American men and Masculinity.
The Fashion Show: Famous Designers Feathers were very much in at the latest shows and they certainly add to the movement. There were many very lovely creations and the idea of creating the animal look was more successful than fur.
Social Media and Fashion Trends The influence of fashion on social media runs the gamut today. Prabhakar, Hitha.’How the Fashion Industry is Embracing Social Media’.Web.
The Influences of Fashion Designers Fashion design is a field that entails a lot of activities ranging from creation of designs to the marketing of the finished fashion products.
The Influence of Jacobs and Cornish on Fashion Born in 1963 in New York, Marc went to the prestigious school of arts, The New York High School and later went on to join The University of Art and Design, Parsons, to further his […]
Coco Chanel: Life, Fashion, Designs, Perfume & Facts The places and people that came into Chanel’s life and helped her take the turn of life that brought her the success she achieved include; the magazine “Time 100: The most important people of the […]
The Indigo: International Fashion Exhibition The fashion exhibition offered designs, embroideries and appliques, knits, fabrics and a lot of other aspects that deal with the fashion industry.
Haute Couture: A Fashion Design Only for the Privileged Haute couture and high fashion is a flight of fancy of the best designers around the world. One of the most prestigious events in the world of fashion is the week of high fashion in […]
Fashion Behavior and History: The Impact of Fashion Behavior on the Mechanisms in Society As a result of social influences, the fashion process performs in many areas of group life, particularly in the area of clothing and adornment.
Miuccia Prada: Luxury-Fashion Pioneer The restlessness of her essence makes her perfect in modern-day fashion circles as she absorbs the dynamism of her world. Miuccia Prada is a symbol of the union between fashion and art.
Bottega Veneta in Italian Fashion The upper part of the dress reminds that of Bottega Veneta; the pieces of fiber cross a bit higher than in case with Tomas’s dress and they are made from thinner cloth.
Fashion: Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton Manufacturer They are tied to the image of the wealthier members of the community. The consumer’s interest lies in his self-image – the image he has and would like to have of himself.
Cultural Identity vs. Ethnic Fashion A part of the modern lifestyle that looks hip and very happening without actually understanding the real meaning of the cultural item as it pertains to the ethnicity of the person.
Added Value in Branding: Fashion and Motor Sectors Such is like the temperature of the area; this brings up the issue of adding value to different brands in the clothing.
Off Season Fashion Sales: Procurement in Retail Karakul’s 2008 article “Joint Pricing and Procurement of Fashion Products in the Existence of a Clearance Market published in the International Journal of Production Economics, cites that in the apparel industry, the dilemma of always […]
Eco-Friendly Design in Contemporary Fashion In this case, fibers are plants that need to be treated during processing; designing and they too require the usage of herbicides, fertilizers, and other chemicals that are hazardous to the environment at large.
Fashion: Why Does It Change in the US? Many people spend a lot of income in the fashions in US this is because with the changes in the technology and culture changes in America, people are becoming more civilized and are ready to […]
Gay Culture’s Influence on Hip Hop Fashion Gay men have the influence of female fashion design due to the fact that most of the designers of female clothes are men and most of them are homosexual.
Fashion as a Mirror for Social Change The restrictive clothing of the previous years, counting up to the ‘Flapper’ era, had been a mark of the suppression of women and was shrouded in societal myth and sexual restraint but became a lesser […]
Fashion Marketing and Trends for Women With every woman wishing to be a niche above her counterparts when it comes to dressing, she is bound to pay a mind boggling amount of money for a piece of cloth that bears the […]
Agile Supply Chain in the Fashion Industry The importance of this theme lies in the fact that today, the quality and speed of interaction with suppliers are the keys to business success, and the sphere associated with style and fashion is no […]
Sustainable Fashion: Approach Evaluation According to Niinimaki, in the fashion industry, there is a special algorithm that determines the nature of interaction with the target audience to maintain stable sales and satisfy customer interest.
Fashion and Cultural Studies by Kaiser Chapter 7 is related to fashion and cultural issues for two reasons, and both of them are about linking the way people dress to their sexuality, but the term “sexuality” can be understood differently.
Turkey as a Business Environment for Fashion Retailing The vision of the company is to be the preferred brand among Muslim women in the Middle East, Asia, and Europe.
Counterfeit Fashion Purchase Behavior in the UAE Being an attractive tourist destination, the UAE is interested in coping with the problem of counterfeits because it has a negative impact on both the economy, especially the luxury fashion industry, and the country’s image […]
Fast Fashion Business Model Pros & Cons Specific Purpose: The presentation is meant to inform listeners about the advantages and disadvantages of fast fashion as the business model and discuss possible strategies retailers can use to increase customer attraction.
Textile and Fashion Technology Academic Journals This journal is both print and electronic and can be accessed using the following URL http://trj.sagepub.com/ The Journal of Industrial Textiles refers to the only journal dedicated entirely to technology, production, style, modeling, and uses […]
Medieval Fashion Styles: Typical Examples In comparison, the modern-day version of the medieval gown seems to be an overly exaggerated version of the original. Considering the overly conservative nature of members of the upper class during the Middle Ages, such […]
Developmental Theory in the Fashion Industry Flaunted by actors and actresses, the wealthy and the entitled these products have come to be associated with being part of the fortuitous upper class of society and with it the accompanying glares and stares […]
Fashion Merchandizing: Current and Potential Hits Thus, the Fall/Winter 2014 2015 can be considered a return to the chic and glamorous fashion of the early 1960s. The choice of material, which incorporates smooth and soft clothes in a range of collections, […]
Social Media Marketing of Luxury Fashion Brands The objectives of the study: To examine the impact of companies’ messages on consumer behaviour; To explore the influence of people’s messages on consumer behaviour; To compare the influence of Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Vintage Fashion: Second-Hand Luxury in Global Market Such a drive can be explained through the prism of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in the aspect of belonging. Thus, there is a steady positive consumer attitude towards vintage clothes in the secondary market, yet […]
The Fashion Channel Company’s Marketing Research The company’s current goal is to create a strategy that could sustain its market leadership position through increased advertisements, improved ratings, and proactive cable affiliation to effectively respond to the current competition. This is an […]
Oliver Cabell’s Fashion Startup Blending Ethics with Profit For instance, in the case of the Bangladesh factory, meeting the human cost would require the management to ensure proper and decent working conditions.
Celebrity Advertisement for Fashion Development The main purpose of this research paper will be to find out how the developmental theory applies in the fashion industry. The relationship between a celebrity and a fan is normally said to Para-social.
Fashion Changes in Sociology and Philosophy As a result of many investigations and analyses, specialists conclude that fashion has the power to impact people’s social tastes and attitudes. Moreover, fashion frequently has a political context and is an outcome of people’s […]
The Impact of Fashion on Interior Design It is important that fashion in many cases is a habitual tendency of the manner in which the members of a community dress.
The Sourcing Shifts in Fashion Industry The paper at hand is aimed at analyzing the impact that the innovations in the artificial intelligence field are likely to have on the fashion industry in general, and supply chain management, in particular.
Fashion Changes in Society and Culture In particular, the pluralism of views was reflected in the character of fashion, which gradually started to synthesize in itself a variety of trends and tendencies.
Fashion in Clothing, Music, and Moods Often, the word “fashion” is used in relation to clothing, but this encompasses only one part of fashion. It is a combination of melancholy and fear that makes them appealing to the cyberpunk fashion.
Pregnant Women Fashion Forecast for the US
Apparel’s Role in History: Fashion Exhibition and Impact of Historical Events on Design
Burberry Group Plc’s Fashion and Retailing
Carmina Campus Project and Fashion Sustainability
Nike and Lululemon Athletica Stores: Shopping Experience
How Can Fashion Be Used to Identify Gender?
4 Chic Fashion Brand’s Merchandising Plan
Men’s Responses to Fashion Advertising
E-Commerce Fashion Business in Saudi Arabia
Global Production Network in the Fashion Industry
Balenciaga Fashion Brand’s History
Fads Impact on the Fashion Industry
Lead Fashion Designers: Enterprise Resource Planning System
Global Economy: Cheap Fashion and the Human Price
The Fashion Channel: Cable TV Network
2014 Fall/Winter Fashion Collection’s Macrotrends
Fashion: Bamboo Fibre in the Textile Industry
Chinese Art, Fashion, and Mass Production
Charity Fashion Show: Project Management
Coco Chanel: Profile and Fashion Design
Peacock Fashion Company’s Online Shops
XL Ladies Clothing: Fashion Industry in the UAE
Online Shopping Impact on the Fashion & Design Industry
Galaxy Fashion Company’s Flexible Work Practices
Fashion History – Women’s Clothing of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s
Fashion as Material Culture
Visvim Fashion Brand and His Founder
CuteCircuit Fashion House and Its Technologies
The Issue of Advertising in Fashion
Beauty and Fashion in United Arab Emirates
Zeizt Fashion Company’s Vertical Integration Process
Coco Chanel Fashion: History of Costume
Women’s Fashion: A Little Black Dress
Color Cycling and Fashion Industry
Mathematics Requirements for Fashion Merchandising
Fundamentals of Fashion and Design
Fashion of Lebanon
Fashion Magazines: Print Media Isn’t Dead and Here’s Why
Fashion Designer Jeremy Scott
Is Faux Fur Responsible for the Rebirth of the highly coveted Real Fur to the Fashion Industry?
Print Fashion Media as a Popular Culture
The Contribution of the Luxury Fashion Industry in Economic Development of the World
Faux Fur and Real Fur: Fashion Industry and Market
The Impact of Instagram on Consumers’ Purchase Intentions in the Fashion Industry in Thailand
Generic Toolkit for Implementing a Web-Based Product Innovation Strategy for Zara Fashion Retailer
Digital Marketing in the Fashion Industry
Instagram: purchase intentions in Thailand fashion industry
Influence of the Fashion Attributes on the Social Status and Personal Identity
Abaya Fashion: Six Major Forces in the Broad Environment
Brand Extension in High End Fashion Industry
“Generational Buying Motivations for Fashion” by Laura Portolese Dias
Designer Clothing Market in the UK Fashion Retail Industry
The Role of the Fashion Buyer Considering Buying for Different Organisations and Categories
Representation of the Parisienne in Advertising and marketing for French perfumes and fashion
Astonishing Success of Zara in the Fast Fashion Industry
“How the Fashion Industry is Embracing Social Media” by Hitha Prabhakar
“The end of fashion: How marketing changed the clothing business forever” by Teri Agins
The Successful Implementation of Social Networks for Fashion Marketing
“Fashion retailing, marketing, and merchandising” by John Major
ZARA: Chic and Fast Fashion
London Fashion Week: Communication and Branding
Inditex Growth and Performance
Zara: Fast fashion from Savvy Systems
Fashion Defense Force Company
“Escaping to Reality: Fashion Photography in the 1990s” by Elliot Smedley
Women’s Fashion in the Chinese Culture Since 1978
Fashion and Leather Goods Group
Fashion and Gender: Globalization, Nation and Ethnicity
Fashion and Appearance
Yota Fashion Brand Competitive Environment
Fashion Styles in 19-20th Centuries
Fashion in the Movie “Zoolander”
Benefits of the Old Fashioned Business Models in the light of Global financial Crisis
Fashion Designers: Coco Chanel’s Artistic Process
French Fashion in the Eighteenth Century
Fashions, gender roles and social views of the 1950s and 1960s
What Makes a Fashion Retail Brand, and One That Can Be Trusted: Zara?
Prada Fashion Sense and Christian Dior Fashion Sense
Fashion helps us to define and show who we are and what we do
Concept of the Fashion Merchandising in Modern Business
Fashion Beach Export Marketing Plan
Strategic Fashion Marketing Paper: SuperGroup plc
Fashion Makeup: Blumarine Fall 2010 Collection
Making a High Fashion Brand and Use Pop-up Stores
From Fashion Producer to Fashion Retailer
Luxury Fashion Label for Men
How Does Celebrity Fashion Affect Teen’s Self-Image?
Does Banning Fashion Shows and New Year Parties Save Our Culture?
How Can Christian Principles Be Applied to Ethical Issues That Relate to the Cost of Fashion?
Are Ethical Purchases and Fast Fashion Mutually Exclusive?
How Did Fashion Contribute to Making 1920s America the Roaring Twenties?
Does Buy-Back Induce More Fashion Sub-Sourcing?
How Are Fashion and Appearance Central to the Construction of Social Identities?
Does Men’s Fashion Reflect Changes in Male Gender Roles?
How Are People Involved in Fashion?
Does the Macroeconomy Predict UK Asset Returns in a Nonlinear Fashion?
How Does Branding Influence Consumers’ Luxury Fashion Choices?
Should the Fashion Industry Continue to Use Ultra-Thin Models?
How Did the Fashion Industry Show the Changing Position of Consumerism and Youth Culture in the 1960s?
Should Underweight Model Size 0 Be Used for Fashion Shows and Magazines?
How Did Women’s Fashion Create Changes in Society in Australia and the World Between 1901 and 1945?
What Are the Specifics of the Japanese Fashion Luxury Market?
How Does Fashion Matter to the Garment District and the Economic Development of New York City?
What Effect Does the Financial Crisis Have on the Luxury Fashion Market?
How Does Fashion Represent the Changing Attitudes to the Gender?
What Elements Would Make a Fashion Brand Store Popular?
How Does Fashion Shape Social Identities?
What Is Fast Fashion, and Which Factor Influences Fast Fashion?
How Does Media Encourage Fashion Goods Consumption?
What Makes Fashion Offensive?
How Does Social Media Affect the Fashion Industry?
How Does Eco-Fashion Impact the Habit of Buying?
What’s Wrong With the Fashion Industry?
How Has Elizabethan Fashion Influenced the Modern Day Fashion World?
How Does Fashion Affect Our Budget Spending?
How Can Fashion Bloggers and Brands Build Beneficial Relationships?
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Fashion and Culture Dissertation Topics
Fashion and Culture Dissertation Topics for 2021. Topic 1: Analysing the role of fashion in re-shaping the western-cultural values: A case study of any western country. Topic 2: How modern fashion of the 21st century represents the political and cultural ideals of the current era. Topic 3: How has western culture influenced the living standards ...
PDF The impact of fast fashion on the environment: Perspectives from
The structure of this dissertation is presented in 6 chapters. Chapter 1 outlines the background of the study and provides an overview of chapters. Chapter 2 presents an up-to-date review of the literature, which considers the definition of fast fashion and literature related to Fast Fashion. This consists mainly of
PDF The impact of fast fashion, consumer behaviour and fashion brand
A thesis submitted to Manchester Metropolitan University for the degree of Master's by Research in the Faculty of Arts and Humanities Revised: January 2021 ... fashion brands are largely exploiting them purely as selling platforms. The survey revealed that fast fashion customers want what fast fashion brands offer, but they
100+ Brilliant Fashion Dissertation Topics Ideas [2024]
The Most Relevant Fashion Dissertation Topic. 35 Interesting Fashion Dissertation Topics. Fashion trends' development in the 20th and 21st centuries. The effect of social media on marketing tactics in the fashion business. Influencers and fashion bloggers' impact on consumer behaviour. The relevance of traditional dress in non-western cultures.
Full article: A review of digital fashion research: before and beyond
In July 2019 a systematic literature review of the digital fashion domain was conducted. Five databases were investigated, using the keywords 'fashion' and 'digital' - namely IEEE, ACM, Eric, Springer Link and Scopus - for 1950-2019. The search produced 910 results and 491 of these items were considered relevant for analysis.
Culture and Fashion Dissertation Topics for FREE
Culture and Fashion Dissertation Topics. The relationship between culture and fashion is intrinsic and dynamic. Cultures across the world use clothing to make statements on the nature of power relations, personal relationships, and hierarchies within communities. The links are diverse and often complex, involving sociological and psychological ...
(PDF) Sustainability and the Fashion Industry
This thesis is based on an analysis of existing research on the fashion industry sustainability and qualitative to get a more in-depth understanding from the consumers' point of view.
Fashion Dissertation Topics: 25+ Ideas and Examples
Dissertation Topics on Sex, Body, and Presentation in Fashion. Adoration and adornment: A critical examination of the significance of body art and piercing in Western civilizations. Fashion and religion: An investigation into the issues about appropriate dress. The real and the subversive: Mannequins and models have been used since the 1960s.
100+ Fashion Dissertation Topics and Ideas
100+ Fashion Dissertation Topics and Ideas - Free Consultation. Published by Alvin Nicolas at November 29th, 2022 , Revised On February 2, 2024. Fashion is an expression of style and dress that changes according to region and time. Unlike Muslim countries, where women must cover their faces with a Naqab, Chador, Burqa or a Hijab, Western ...
Fashion Dissertation Topics & Ideas 2024
List of New Dissertation Topics in Fashion 2024. Topic 1: Leveraging Blockchain for Enhanced Traceability in the Fashion Industry. Topic 2: Analysing Virtual Stores, Virtual Clothes, and Virtual Influencers for Inclusive Marketing in the Fashion Industry. Topic 3: Examining the Role of Artificial Intelligence in Personalised Fashion ...
173 Trending Fashion Research Topics For Best Thesis
Quick Fashion Research Paper Topics. The role of photography in the marketing of fashion brands in today's world. Marketing strategies of the fashion industry in the 80s. The role of digital print in today's fashion marketing. The part of the color in fashionable dressing.
(PDF) The sustainability in fashion: a systematic ...
The slow fashion movemen t appears as a counterpoint to the fast-fashion mode l, seeking to add value in a rational way to clothing items in the globalized market, inserting sustainability. as the ...
How to Write a Dissertation Sample About Fashion and Culture?
The dissertation structure should be well-organized and logically connected to the topic. The structure of your dissertation must be coherent and reflect your interests and abilities. A sample dissertation about fashion and culture should include an analysis of contemporary and past fashion trends. The writer should be able to have personal ...
Analysis of the sustainability aspects of fashion: A literature review
The fashion industry is the second-most polluting industry in the world. 1-3 This is the main reason why it has to be transformed into a more sustainable one. Fashion sustainability is a complex issue 4 that covers three equivalently important aspects: environmental, social, and economic. 3-9 The environmental aspect considers the creation of ecological value and resource saving.
PDF Consumer Awareness on Sustainable Fashion
Thesis, UAS Completion year 2021 Number of pages 45 + appendices Title of the thesis Consumer Awareness on Sustainable Fashion Degree Bachelor of Business Administration, International Business Abstract The thesis work studied the factors influencing the decision-making process of the consumers for purchasing sustainable fashion products.
Dress, body and self: research in the social ...
The purpose of this research was to provide a critical review of key research areas within the social psychology of dress. The review addresses published research in two broad areas: (1) dress as a stimulus and its influence on (a) attributions by others, attributions about self, and on one's behavior and (2) relationships between dress, the body, and the self. We identify theoretical ...
Exploring Fashion as Communication: The Search for a new fashion
Uncovering Fashion: Fashion Communications Across the Media provides an understanding of fashion journalism as a craft. (Wolbers, Citation 2009) This textbook is useful for training students willing to enter the profession. However, its lack of critical tools works as a template for molding future fashion columnists that will perpetuate fashion ...
117 Fashion Research Topics| Top List Of Ideas
In fact, our experts have already compiled a list of fashion topics to research in 2023: Talk about the notion of "invisible branding" in fashion. Research women's fashion in the 1980s. The role played by art in fashion trends. Research 3 major fashion companies. Talk about the low rise fashion trend.
PDF Interest of Female Consumers in Finland About Sustainable Fashion
Fashion Industry and see whether Female Consumers in Finland are interested in Sustainable Fashion. This thesis is carried out in favour of the author's recent launch of a sustainable clothing line. Therefore, the topic is mainly chosen for the theory with a purpose in mind that it would somewhat give an idea and enables the author to gain ...
Dissertations / Theses: 'History of fashion'
Consult the top 50 dissertations / theses for your research on the topic 'History of fashion.'. Next to every source in the list of references, there is an 'Add to bibliography' button. Press on it, and we will generate automatically the bibliographic reference to the chosen work in the citation style you need: APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago ...
Guidelines For Writing a Dissertation on Fashion Designing
When writing a dissertation on fashion design, there are many important guidelines to follow. First, you should choose a topic that you are interested in. Also, you should consider the limits of the study area. A dissertation on fashion design can involve research on many different aspects of the field. For example, fashion problems are often ...
(PDF) Academic writing in the fashion studies
Academic writing in the fashion studies. International Journal of Fashion Studies 2 (2):159-165. Authors: Emanuela Mora. Catholic University of the Sacred Heart. Agnes Rocamora. University of the ...
286 Fashion Essay Topic Ideas & Examples
Fashion and individual identity. This fact makes the clothes a reflection of the person, which is why the choice of fashion is taken to represent personal identity. Fashion and Reasons to Love It. The second reason for me to love bags is that my bag is a very important part of my image.

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Fashion and Culture Dissertation Topics

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2022 Fashion and Culture D issertation Topics

Topic 2: An investigation into the relevance of culture on social accountability and natural fabric selection by fashion consumers.

Topic 3: An assessment of the impact of global culture on the UK fashion trends.

Topic 4: The relationship of religion with the fashion choices of the consumers in the UK.

Topic 5: An assessment of the evolution of the fashion trends and colour choices in the UK.

Covid-19 Fashion and Culture Research Topics

The role of the fashion industry during the Coronavirus pandemic

Impacts of COVID-19 on people and their culture

Coronavirus and creative sector

The future of fashion, cultural and creative sector after COVID-19

Fashion and Culture Dissertation Topics for 2021

Topic 2: The growing popularity of natural fabrics

Topic 3: Fashion designing in demand

Topic 4: Occasion Shopping Vs. Obsession with shopping

Topic 1: Analysing the role of fashion in re-shaping the western-cultural values: A case study of any western country.

Topic 2: How modern fashion of the 21st century represents the political and cultural ideals of the current era

Topic 3: How has western culture influenced the living standards and preferences of Asian Consumers: A case study of Pakistan and India

Topic 4: Assessing the fashion trends of royal families around the world: Comparative analysis of the UK and Saudi Arabia

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Fashion and Culture Dissertation Topics for 2024

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