Ever wonder why fashionably-dressed people always seem to exude confidence and charm? A new study now claims there is a scientific reason for this.
A new study published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, revealed that a person's style and clothing choices can affect their mood, confidence, and ultimately, their health, Huffington Post reported. This phenomenon is termed by scientists as the "unclothed cognition."
According to the main researchers of the new study, Adam Hajo and Adam D. Galinsky, unclothed cognition works because of two independent factors - the symbolic meaning of the clothes to the person as well as the physical experience of sporting these clothes. In their study, they asked the participants to wear a medical lab coat, wear a painter's outfit, and wear their ordinary clothes. They found that participants' sustained attention improved when wearing the doctor's coat.
This finding has already been touched by Professor Karen J. Pine, in her book "Mind What You Wear: the Psychology of Fashion." According to the author, all pieces of clothing have their own character. Wearing a piece of clothing can transfer the character to the person unconsciously.
This is why New York Times is advocating the need to "dress the part." Doing so will make "walking the talk" easier. According to the article, dressing shabbily is a disservice to ourselves.
Even if it is distasteful, people truly judge each other and one way they do so is looking at how the person dress. In addition, what people wear can affect how they feel about themselves. When getting ready to perform a task, mental preparation can be aided or hindered by what one is wearing. These are enough reasons to try and put some effort to dressing up.