Feeling Lost After Graduating

Like everything (good and bad), it will eventually come to an end. When I left university I felt relieved but I also had a sense of dread not knowing exactly what to do next as a psychology graduate.

When I accepted my unconditional offer on UCAS, I wasn’t aware of the uncertainty that I was going to face a couple of years later when it came to securing a job that I was qualified for and felt satisfied with. Life after graduation is a major life change, yet people joke about it. You’re now prepared to boil water for pasta. Ha ha, that’s funny. Not. It’s not something to joke about.

Everything sucks!

When my degree certificate came in the post, I freaked out. “What do I do now?” I asked myself. At the time, I was working part-time in a stationery store and had the burning desire to leave as soon as possible. I would sit in my car during my lunch break and say to myself, “Damn, what am I doing in this car right now? I didn’t pull all-nighters for this. I was meant to have a fulfilling and well-paid job by now. I was meant to be working in a big city. Instead, it’s the complete opposite and I’m sat in my car wallowing.” I felt alone.

I was falling out of love with my hobby, painting. I felt guilty for picking up a paintbrush instead of looking for jobs. A couple of months ago you would find me at my parents’ house slowly losing the will to live at my desk. For hours on end I would constantly be applying for all sorts of jobs related to psychology. It was repetitive. I would research companies, tailor cover letters, fill in my details on application forms over and over again for every single job. And then with all of the applications came all of the rejections (if I was lucky to even get a response). I had never been rejected so much in my entire life. What was I doing wrong? What was I doing right, even?

A couple of months ago you would find me at my parents’ house slowly losing the will to live at my desk.

I started to question if I was a fraud, applying to jobs that were too good for me. I got into this mind-set that was all, “Oh, I’m not going to apply to this job, if I did anyway, they wouldn’t accept me.” I was getting increasingly frustrated, resentful, embarrassed, and hopeless as each day went by. I would swear, cry into my pillow as quietly as I could, drive around aimlessly, limit my interaction with others, and then act like everything was okay – Behaviours that were not normal for me. You learn to act like you’re fine when you’re really not. I was getting to a point where I would question the purpose of life. It wasn’t healthy for me, but I kept all of these feelings to myself. I didn’t want to bother my siblings, my parents, nor my girlfriend who had enough on their plates already. A 21 year old guy should know how to sort his own life out, right?

I feel like cr@p.

One day, I decided to sign up for LinkedIn to explore more job opportunities, only to find other people from my university smashing it. It seemed like everyone else around me had a good job, got their dream car, were homeowners, wore the nicest clothes, went on the most expensive holidays, and had enough time to travel. It seemed like their lives were mint. All these comparisons would be on my mind. How did he get so many connections? How did she get that opportunity? How did he join all of these societies? How did she get a good job so soon? I put in years of hard work too, why am I not successful like these people? I also felt similar feelings around my siblings. Around the dinner table they had good and exciting things to share to our parents. However when it came to me, I had nothing of interest to share. It was an ideal opportunity for my parents to compare me to my siblings. Everything is not what it seems to be.

It seemed like their lives were mint. All these comparisons would be on my mind.

Several months have passed since I graduated and within that timeframe I’ve learned to look at things from a different perspective. I’ve changed my mind-set. Firstly, I’ve picked up my paintbrush again. Painting helps me to chill out and take my mind off a lot of stuff. I am trying to enjoy my life for what it is now. Secondly, I think that gratitude has helped me a lot. I am in a fortunate position to have a degree and that I am able to make choices with what I do with my life. I have it a lot better than other people. Thirdly, I’ve stopped applying for jobs endlessly because it makes me unhappy. Instead, I’ve signed up for job alerts, so if I see something that I’d like to do, I apply for it then. What you’d like to do might even change. I’m trying to work smarter, not harder, at job applications. Applying for jobs is not a total waste of time because it’s helping me to get used to rejection, which is something that many young people do not have the chance to experience.

Everything is in place when you’re in school, all of your classes are sorted, you’re familiar with your teachers, and you’ve got a clear goal which is to work towards your qualifications. You know what’s coming next. And then, when you get to university, you’re in charge of yourself. Just you. No one else. You have to accept that you’re going through a major life change. There is uncertainty. You don’t know what’s coming next. Considering this uncertainty, you have to put certainty back into your life. I’ve done this by making goals for myself so that I have something to work towards, whether they are big or small, easy or difficult, personal or professional. It gives me a sense of accomplishment and keeps me occupied.

Considering this uncertainty, you have to put certainty back into your life.

I think that universities don’t pay enough attention to students’ mental health both during and after their time at university. Why is that though? It’s a stressful time in a person’s life, especially if that person feels pressure to perform their best, so it’s only right to assume that they need support, whether they explicitly ask for it or not. Don’t just hand students their degree at the end of their course and then forget that they ever existed. Follow them up, make sure they’re okay, and ask them how they’re feeling. Be able to provide them with help and support accordingly. Provide more than a handful of opportunities for students to be able to build up the courage to say, “Yeah, maybe I’m not okay.”

If you are feeling low, please contact your GP, or seek advice from your university wellbeing service. They're there for YOU.

What Is Subvertising?

Did you know that a great proportion of outdoor advertising in the UK appears in subway and rail stations, bus stops, and transport hubs? (Thompson et al., 2021). And that Transport for London has one of the most valuable advertising estates in the world?

ADVERTISING SH*TS IN YOUR HEAD.

As they say…

Advertising sh*ts in your head? | A quiet evening on the Elizabeth Line.

I had the pleasure of travelling on the Elizabeth Line a couple of weeks ago. A quick fact about the Elizabeth Line, London’s newest rail line, is that it stretches more than “100km from Reading and Heathrow in the west to Shenfield or Abbey Wood in the east” (Heathrow, 2022). What astounded me was the lack of big and flashy ads in your face... Unless there was, I was too tired to notice at the time.

What astounded me was the lack of big and flashy ads in your face... Unless there was, I was too tired to notice at the time.

Ads, adverts, advertisements, whatever name floats your boat, appear nearly everywhere we go. Ads appear in places such as billboards, TV channels, TV shows, radio stations, magazines, social media sites, news sites, YouTube, lesser known streaming sites, clothing, lifts, planes, mugs, websites, doors, vehicles, pens, in and on transport, stations, toilet stalls, and even through your post box. Don’t get me started on those mobile ads where it’s impossible to tap the ‘x’ icon which is smaller than an amoeba. Okay, probably not an amoeba. You get the point. Frustrating.

Advertising sh*ts in your head?

Quite frequently as a Fashion Marketing student, I think back to when the infamous ‘beach body ready’ ads were a thing and rightfully so met with criticism. I think a lot. I also think about the process ads or campaigns like this go through… the money, time, and effort spent.

Recently, fast fashion retailer Boohoo.com breached the Advertising Standards Authority’s (ASA) codes on ‘social responsibility’, and ‘harm and offence’ for a product listing (ASA, 2022). The listing, now banned, featured a model inappropriately posing in a T-shirt stating “limited edition” and thong style bikini bottoms. The complaint was raised because the listing was believed to have been objectifying and sexualising women.

Obviously the main goal of a campaign or ad is to promote a product or service. They can’t make everyone happy. What can one do if they’re not happy? Well, there’s this thing called Subvertising… (I’m not advising you to take part in this).

Subvertising, short for ‘subverting advertising’, is the “illicit practice of intervening into urban advertising space, from graffiti scribbles and removed adverts, to full-blown billboard takeovers and digitally hacked adverts” (Dekeyser, 2021). You may have also heard of the terms brandalism (brand vandalism), adhacking, and adbusting. Many argue that subvertising is wrong, yet others argue that people should be entitled to the freedom of expression. People have the ability to oppose opinions that they don’t necessarily agree with.

Frederick et al. (2016) examined the effect of placing Photoshop disclaimers (e.g., “WARNING, this photo’s been Photoshopped”) on thin-ideal media images of swimsuit models on body image. It was found that adult women exposed to disclaimers did not report higher body state satisfaction or lower drive for thinness than women exposed to unaltered images. In other words, women who saw the disclaimer images did not feel any better about their bodies than women who saw the original images without disclaimers.

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Advertising Standards Authority. (2022). ASA Ruling in Boohoo.com UK Ltd. https://www.asa.org.uk/rulings/boohoo-com-uk-ltd-a21-1136109-boohoo-com-uk-ltd.html

Dekeyser, T. (2021). Dismantling the advertising city: Subvertising and the urban commons to come. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 39(2), 309-327. https://doi.org/10.1177/0263775820946755

Frederick, D. A., Sandhu, G., Scott, T., & Akbari, Y. (2016). Reducing the negative effects of media exposure on body image: Testing the effectiveness of subvertising and disclaimer labels. Body Image, 17, 171-174. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2016.03.009

Heathrow. (2022). Elizabeth Line. https://www.heathrow.com/transport-and-directions/by-rail-or-train/elizabeth-line

Thompson, C., Clary, C., Er, V., Adams, J., Boyland, E., Burgoine, T., Cornelsen, L., de Vocht, F., Egan, M., Lake, A. A., Lock, K., Mytton, O., Petticrew, M., White, M., Yau, A., & Cummins, S. (2021). Media representations of opposition to the 'junk food advertising ban' on the Transport for London network: A thematic content analysis of UK news and trade press. SSM - Population Health, 15, 100828. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssmph.2021.100828

The Psychology Of Y2K Fashion

What is Y2K fashion?

ME AND THE GIRLS

(Not really)

What is the meaning of Y2K fashion you ask? Y stands for year, 2 stands for the number two, and K stands for 1000. Put them together and voila, year 2000. Y2K is used to refer to the fashion trends of the (early) 2000s. Widely regarded as unflattering by many, this era of fashion has made a comeback, and is known today as the 'y2k aesthetic'.Some well-known Y2K clothing choices include:

• Low-rise jeans: Jeans that sit low on the waist.

• Tank-tops.

• Ruffles.

• Crop tops and fitted tees.

• All sorts of belts, chunky included.

• Wrap around sunglasses... worn indoors of course.

• Skinny scarves(?)

• Furry stuff.

• Juicy Couture tracksuits specifically made of that strange material...

• Open-toed sandals.

• Denim... everything. Denim couple outfits. Denim mini skirts. Denim jeans. Denim hats.

• Fitted and flared tracksuits. Must be a matching top and bottom to count. Zip hoodies only.

• Dresses... over jeans. Yes, a dress as a top, served over jeans.

• Pointed toe boots with the mini stiletto heel.

• Scrunchies.

• Hair clips.

• Shoulder bags. The ones that sit right under your armpits.

• Bejewelled everything.

• Bucket hats.

• Some display of midriff.

• Boot cut jeans, usually blue.

• Lip gloss tubes.

• Playboy...

• Cami tops.

Although I speak of these clothing items like I was around at the time. Well I was actually... You see, I was born in 1999 (A long time ago to some of you).

This trend does not appeal to me whatsoever and it must wither away as soon as possible.

I was technically a baby, but the trend carried on throughout the mid 2000s, evident in many childhood TV shows. I'm sure you have a few names that come to mind.

Why does Y2K fashion appeal to many young consumers today? There are a number of factors that contribute to the popularity of Y2K fashion.

Nostalgia

The year 2000 marked the beginning of a new millennium (Y2K also refers to the issue computers were thought to face when processing dates after 31st December 1999), people were optimistic for what was to come... Flip phones, webcams, Furbies, the Game Boy Advance, MP3 players, USBs, Lizzie McGuire, and CD players.

People who 'grew up' in the 2000s feel nostalgic about the time which can lead them to accept Y2K fashion trends with open arms.

One reason why Y2K fashion is so popular is because it evokes nostalgia.

Imagine feeling nostalgic about the likes of TikTok, Uber, Netflix, Deliveroo, Amazon, and AirPods in the next 20 years.

Nostalgia is an emotion that can have both positive and negative effects. Nostalgia takes us away from the present, it can be a way of coping with stress, connecting with our identity, and can even help us to learn from the past.

For many of us, the early 2000s were a time of care-free youth (no social media). Y2K fashion can be a way to recapture that feeling of nostalgia (and to somewhat, feel young again).

Y2K fashion can also be a way to connect with others. Y2K fashion was popular among a wide range of people in the early 2000s, so it can be a way to bond with others who share that nostalgia.

The huge success of the Barbie movie (2023) in the West demonstrates the significance of nostalgia, and reminiscing on the past.

Self-expression

Y2K fashion can be used to express yourself. The clothes are often unique and eye-catching, and they can be a way to stand out from the crowd. This can be appealing to young consumers who are looking for a way to express their individuality. Y2K fashion is quite a difference to the minimalist fashion trends of the 2020s. When a fashion trend becomes mainstream, people look elsewhere and embrace different fashion trends.

Y2K fashion can be a way to challenge traditional fashion norms.

Today, many of us are turning towards timeless and minimal pieces that aren't attached to trends.

Affordability and Availability

Have you seen shoulder bags, wide leg jeans, slingbacks, and platform shoes everywhere on your Instagram feed lately?

Darn She*n.

Y2K fashion is mainly accessible and affordable. Many fast fashion brands have embraced the re-emergence of this era, making it accessible to a wide range of young adults with just a trip to the store or the click of a button.

Designer brands largely influence fashion trends and dictate what's to be seen in stores worldwide. Designer brands have been hard at work bringing back trends.

The growth of vintage shops and online marketplaces like Vinted, Depop, and thredUP have made it easier for young consumers to find Y2K fashion pieces. This has made it more affordable for people to embrace this fashion trend.

Influence of celebrities and social media

Social media has also played a role in the comeback of Y2K fashion. Many people on social media have been sharing photos and videos of themselves wearing Y2K fashion trends, which has helped to popularise this trend.

We follow others in order to fit in.

In addition, celebrities can influence what we wear. Celebrities and influencers who have been wearing Y2K fashion trends have helped to popularise this trend, for example, the it-girls (someone somewhere thinks this) of the 2020s Dua Lipa, Hailey Bieber, and Bella Hadid.

A modern take on body ideals

In the early 2000s, the 'thin' body type was the ideal. Y2K fashion trends like low-rise jeans, crop tops, and tank-tops tended to expose the body including the arms, legs, and midriff. Some people believe that Y2K fashion can be harmful to body image, as it can promote certain expectations of our bodies.

However, others argue that Y2K fashion can be empowering, because it allows people to embrace their bodies.

Y2K fashion is about self-expression and individuality, and there is no one right way to look. Body positivity is more prevalent than it has ever been.

Reviving fashion trends is an opportunity to learn from the past.

Today, some brands have given the Y2K trend a modern twist, and made it somewhat less awful.

How to wear Y2K fashion in 2024?

We're not in 2000.

Here are some tips for incorporating Y2K fashion into your wardrobe in a healthy and positive way:

• Choose clothes that fit you well and make you feel confident. Don't be afraid to experiment with different styles until you find something that you love. You don't need to fit into one 'aesthetic', and do remember that trends do come and go.

• Avoid comparing yourself to others. It can be easy to find yourself comparing yourself to others, especially on social media. Remember that everyone is different and that there is no right way to look.

• Remember that fashion is about self-expression. The most important thing is to wear clothes that make you feel good and that express your personal style.

• Shop at thrift stores, vintage shops, and even charity shops. You can find some genuine Y2K fashion pieces for a good price.

• Ask relatives if they have any Y2K pieces around. Surely someone has something at the back of their wardrobe or in the loft in a box.

• Search for pieces on online marketplaces such as thredUP, Vinted, and Depop.

• Make it fun. Have fun with Y2K fashion. Don't be afraid to experiment and express your own personal style.

Overall, there are a number of factors that contribute to the popularity of Y2K fashion. Most notably, it taps into nostalgia and it's pretty accessible for many.

A Lesson From America’s Next Top Model

America’s Next Top Model (ANTM) was a reality TV series in which contestants competed to receive a modelling contract with a modelling agency. There are international versions of the series, including Britain and Ireland.

WE WERE ALL ROOTING FOR YOU!

Thank you Tyra for inspiring PBMIF’s name. <3

Sometimes when I’m bored, I look at my specially curated YouTube playlist of all my favourite videos. Such including old Vines, vlogs, beautifully directed movie scenes, tutorials, recipes, and pop culture memes.

Ever so often I come across the infamous ANTM Tiffany spat (the one where Tyra states, “I was rooting for you. We were all rooting for you!”).

As much as I find it a good source of inspiration to keep me humble, looking back at the series, especially the earlier cycles, the way the contestants were treated was wrong and humiliating. Plain and simple. Needless to say, this opinion is not new.

However, was this an accurate depiction of the modelling industry over a decade ago? Probably, yes, but with a sprinkling of contrived drama, and a perspective that was once accepted without question at the time.

One thing that has caught most attention lately are the ‘makeover’ episodes whereby contestants are given haircuts or cosmetic procedures to enhance their appearance for modelling, essentially acting as a unique selling point for each contestant.

Looking back at it, I used to think, what would these people change about my appearance? Considering that this series’ target audience was mainly young and impressionable women – it doesn’t sit right. Besides that, don’t get me started on the ridiculous assignments.

Why am I watching a contestant getting knocked over by a pendulum decoration? Don’t get me wrong, the modelling industry is built on critique, but it doesn’t have to be obnoxious critique. Of course being a model in the real world isn’t all sweet but why can’t it be?

Why does it have to be demoralising?

Looking back at it, I used to think, what would these people change about my appearance?

Yeah, yeah, I know it’s a reality TV series and a bit of drama needs to take place, but if ANTM was to live another day in today’s world, would it feature arguments, mocking, fights, controversial photoshoots, and tears? What is the limit of a reality TV series?

What is the impact of being on a programme like this on the contestants’ mental health just for the sake of entertainment? Contestants who have supposedly never lived with a group of other people, never lived away from home, never had any experience modelling, or never coped with criticism and/or damning remarks in a tough, exploitative, and secretive industry? On that note, what support can TV producers offer their contestants who experience large exposure in a matter of days?

According to recent contestants of modern reality TV series, there is simply not enough support before, during, and after appearing on these shows.

The series, first aired in 2003, can be used as a lesson to show what is wrong can be made right… it’s an example that things change over time, that things can change for the better. Things were different back then. If we just open our eyes, a lot has changed. We see all types of models, brands are beginning to promote inclusivity, and excessive retouching of models is called out… just to name a few developments.

Let’s learn from these issues and actually make changes instead of just acknowledging it when it becomes relevant every now and then.

What Is Fashion Psychology?

WHAT ON EARTH IS FASHION PSYCHOLOGY?

Yes, it’s a thing.

Have you ever heard of 'fashion psychology' or of a 'fashion psychologist' before?

If not, these terms probably sound absolutely pathetic to you, but hear me out.

What is fashion psychology?

WHAT IS THE MEANING OF PSYCHOLOGY?

According to the American Psychological Association (APA), psychology, put simply, is the scientific study of the mind and behaviour. It's a diverse scientific discipline comprising of different branches of research (e.g., biological, cognitive, developmental, personality, social), as well as several subareas of research and applied psychology (e.g., clinical, industrial/organisational, educational, human factors, health, neuropsychology, cross-cultural).

WHAT IS FASHION PSYCHOLOGY THEN?

Now, fashion psychology is the study of the relationship between fashion and human behaviour. It examines how fashion choices are influenced by factors such as culture, society, our values, and individual differences. It's a new study area in psychology, but did you know that psychology itself is a pretty new discipline? The APA considers psychology to be a STEM discipline.

"Fashion *psychologists" advise individuals, brands, and businesses on a range of issues such as marketing strategies, sustainability, consumer behaviour, designing, branding, and visual merchandising. It's not limited to this however. It's like a mixture of marketing, industrial-organisational, and social psychology specifically focused on 'fashion', fashion 'consumers', and the 'fashion industry'.

Fashion psychology has the ability to make a huge impact on the fashion industry. However, research is limited and 'fashion psychology' is widely misunderstood. Psychology is a science which is supported by empirical evidence. It's not meant to misinform the general public with 'facts' pulled out from thin air, (e.g., "Wearing black sunglasses makes you look mysterious").

SOME TOPICS OF INTEREST IN FASHION PSYCHOLOGY

Psychology is in your everyday, from what you wear, to the way you shop. Why do you choose to go to certain stores? Why do you buy what you do? How can you improve your life in relation to clothing? More and more people are creating their own brands, we're constantly exposed to advertisements, fashion and beauty companies are competing to get our attention, we're becoming more understanding of the negative environmental and social impact of fast fashion (and the fashion industry as a whole)… Oh, and there also needs to be more regulation in the fashion and retail industry. There's a lot that can be explored.

Fashion psychology has the potential to help us understand ourselves better and to make informed decisions about our clothing choices. As the fashion industry continues to change, fashion psychology will become important in helping us understand the psychological factors that drive, well... fashion.

*The title of 'psychologist' itself is not protected within the UK, therefore anyone can call themselves a psychologist. The HCPC (Health and Care Professions Council) in the UK regulate titles - Professional psychologists register to use these titles: Practitioner Psychologist, Registered Psychologist, Clinical Psychologist, Forensic Psychologist, Counselling Psychologist, Health Psychologist, Educational Psychologist, Occupational Psychologist, and Sport (and Exercise) Psychologist. These titles are protected by law and you mustn't use them unless registered.

Thank you for reading.

Curiosity is the best outfit.

Easing Off Fast Fashion Trends

PLASTIC GALORE!

Please re-use these bags.

One of my favourite programmes at the moment is ITV's Dress To Impress (reruns). It’s a reality series that involves three contestants battling it out to impress a singleton by finding them an outfit according to a brief. What really happens though is that the contestants don't listen to the brief and buy what they want instead. The programme features a lot of clothing that were trendy at the time it was filmed. Sometimes I shriek when I see what trends were worn back in the day. It's got me thinking about issues around fast fashion. I’m ashamed to say that there are many clothing items in my wardrobe that were trends at one point in time and that I’d be embarrassed to wear today.

Do we really need to wear clothes that are in? Why can’t we just have our basics and be done with it?

Fast fashion refers to the clothing industry's business model of replicating and mass-producing recent catwalk trends and high-fashion designs, at a low cost, and in a really short space of time. Trendy clothes at cheaper prices. Some fast fashion brands include SHEIN, Boohoo, H&M, Urban Outfitters, Uniqlo, and Primark. There are many issues surrounding fast fashion such as poor working conditions, exploitation, negative environmental impact, green-washing, and overconsumption, just to name a few.

The fashion industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world. We can’t really blame consumers for purchasing fast fashion because some consumers may not be able to afford well-made and long lasting clothing that usually comes with a high price tag. What can consumers and businesses do to engage in and promote sustainable practices in fast fashion?

There are many issues surrounding fast fashion such as poor working conditions, exploitation, negative environmental impact, green-washing, and overconsumption, just to name a few.

Explore sustainable behaviour framework

How can a consumer be nudged to make sustainable choices? White et al. (2019) have developed a framework, named SHIFT, to encourage sustainable consumer behaviour change. SHIFT implies that consumers are more persuaded to engage in pro-environmental behaviours when the context influences psychological factors being, social influence, habit formation, individual self, feelings and cognition, and tangibility (White et al., 2019). Social influence – Consumers are impacted by the presence, behaviours, and expectations of others. Habit – Many sustainable behaviours involve repetition. It is suggested that to encourage consumers to repeat sustainable actions, actions should be easy to perform, and consumers could be offered incentives and/or feedback. The Individual Self – Who we are as an individual influences our behaviours. This factor involves self-concept, self-interest, self-consistency, self-efficacy, and individual differences. Feelings and Cognition – Our thoughts and feelings help us to evaluate sustainable actions. Self-transcendence and openness to change values have a positive impact on consumers' levels of ethical concern towards welfare (human and animal), and the environment. It has been found that an individual's level of concern towards animal welfare and the environment positively influences a consumer's likeliness to purchase ethically marketed fast fashion (Stringer et al., 2020).

SHIFT implies that consumers are more persuaded to engage in pro-environmental behaviours when the context influences psychological factors.

Have a try at curating a capsule wardrobe

Little to no research has been carried out on the effects of owning a capsule wardrobe. Recently, Bardley et al. (2022) investigated the effect of a 3 week capsule wardrobe on 10 female participants. To put it simply, the capsule wardrobe is a limited collection of apparel that are of high quality, long lasting, and suitable for a variety of occasions. Usually, capsule wardrobes consist of clothes that complement each other. The capsule wardrobe has gained attention within the past few years because it helps guide consumers to consume less whilst allowing them to explore their style at the same time. The capsule wardrobe positively impacted participants; they felt less stressed about choosing what to wear, they became less attached to fashion trends, and they enjoyed exploring their style. Participants were also more aware of conscious consumption (Bardey et al., 2022).

Of course, buying high quality products may not be suitable for everyone, but high quality products don't have to always be costly. Take a look around second-hand clothing apps - You'll be amazed at the bargains you can find.

Educate ourselves with the facts

Stringer et al. (2022) have found that consumers “perceive worker welfare concerns at both a proximal and cultural distance to themselves, and therefore struggle to connect with the issues associated with modern slavery”. In others words, consumers don’t see modern slavery first-hand and it doesn’t affect them personally. Out of sight, out of mind? Consumers acknowledge that exploitation is common practice in fast fashion to ensure that clothing remains cheap.

Out of sight, out of mind?

Zhang et al. (2021) conducted a study on consumer attitudes towards sustainability of fast fashion apparel in the UK, and found that consumers’ claimed knowledge of sustainability is higher than actual knowledge. Therefore consumers should regularly update their knowledge to avoid being misled by fast fashion companies. In addition, Zhang et al. (2021) state that fast fashion producers should be aware that “female working class consumers in the UK, who constitute a major part of the fast fashion market, are not sensitive to fast fashion products with sustainability features. Excessive emphasis on this could probably harm the market share” (Zhang et al., 2021). In the researchers’ words, females are “less sensitive to prices when purchasing fast fashion products with sustainability features”, and males however, are “more ready to increase their purchases of sustainable fast fashion products than females”.

Spread awareness

According to Chaturvedi et al. (2020), Gen Z consumers have strong ethical and moral values towards protecting the environment, which influences their purchase intentions. They take cost, environmental concern, perceived value, and personal norms into account when deciding to purchase recycled clothing. Because of these factors, the researchers suggest that marketers should provide thorough information about the positives of buying recycled clothing such as how it is produced and how it can reduce negative impact on the environment. Chaturvedi et al. (2020) also recommend that consumers who purchase recycled clothing should be offered rewards such as discounts and gift vouchers.

Ditch fast fashion apps

Limiting your access to fast fashion can save you money… and time. Many consumers regret the amount of time they spend on mobile shopping apps (McLean et al., 2022). McLean and colleagues carried out a study to understand the effects of consumers' interactions with mobile shopping apps (their intentions to reuse them, loyalty towards brands, and brand reputation). The researchers found that the addictive nature of shopping apps led to regrettable escapism. When scrolling through mobile shopping apps, participants enter a ‘flow’ state (i.e., being absorbed and engrossed in an activity). During this period, time feels distorted. As a consequence of spending so much time on these apps, consumers feel guilt and frustration.

The researchers found that the addictive nature of shopping apps led to regrettable escapism.

Be aware that influencers, influence

Social media influencers, generally found on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok are becoming increasingly popular amongst young people. They have one job to do and that is to influence others. Influencers gain loyal and dedicated followers, which attract the attention of brands. Brands pay influencers to advertise their products and services, especially online fashion retailers. It’s highly cost effective and the need for traditional marketing methods such as television adverts is no more (Sinha & Fung, 2021). Some influencers even create their own brands.

Influencers play a large role in fast fashion, especially on platforms like YouTube. According to Thornton (2021), who studied unethical consumption habits of five fashion YouTubers/influencers, there is a need for fashion influencers to educate their viewers about fast fashion’s impact on the environment. Through 15 videos on the platform, Thornton (2021) found that: fast fashion brands dominate YouTube; YouTubers do not take responsibility for their unethical consumption habits; and no YouTuber successfully avoided making unsustainable fashion choices. If you don’t like the content your favourite YouTuber, or influencer in general is creating, let them know politely in their comments section, or just don’t entertain yourself with their fast fashion videos/content.

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Bardey, A., Booth, M., Heger, G., & Larsson, J. (2022). Finding yourself in your wardrobe: An exploratory study of lived experiences with a capsule wardrobe. International Journal of Market Research, 64(1), 113-131. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470785321993743

Chaturvedi, P., Kulshreshtha, K. & Tripathi, V. (2020). Investigating the determinants of behavioral intentions of generation Z for recycled clothing: an evidence from a developing economy. Young Consumers, 21(4), 403-417. https://doi.org/10.1108/YC-03-2020-1110

McLean, G., Al-Nabhani, K., & Marriott, H. (2022). 'Regrettable-escapism' the negative effects of mobile app use: a retail perspective. Psychology and Marketing, 39(1), 150-167. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21584

Sinha, J. I. & Fung, T. T. (2021). How Social Media Micro-Influencers Are Disrupting the Business of Youth Fashion. Rutgers Business Review, 6(1), 44-50.

Stringer, T., Mortimer, G. & Payne, A. R. (2020). Do ethical concerns and personal values influence the purchase intention of fast-fashion clothing? Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 24(1), 99-120. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFMM-01-2019-0011

Stringer, T., Payne, A. R. & Mortimer, G. (2022). As cheap as humanly possible: why consumers care less about worker welfare. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 26(4), 717-737. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFMM-06-2021-0158

Thornton, I. (2021). “That is a Huge Wardrobe and Clothing Mistake!": The Unethical Consumption Habits of YouTube's Fashion Influencers and the Environmental Consequences of a Disposable Lifestyle. Pell Scholars and Senior Theses, 136.

White, K., Habib, R., & Hardisty, D. J. (2019). How to SHIFT Consumer Behaviors to be More Sustainable: A Literature Review and Guiding Framework. Journal of Marketing, 83(3), 22-49. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022242919825649

Zhang, B., Zhang, Y., & Zhou, P. (2021). Consumer Attitude towards Sustainability of Fast Fashion Products in the UK. Sustainability, 13(4), 1646. http://doi.org/10.3390/su13041646

Can I Get The Uhhh…

SPAGHETTI STRAP ANYONE?

A couple of days ago, I had sent my little (17 year old) sister to Boots to get our mum a birthday gift. I told her to get anything that she thought mum would like. A couple of hours later when I came home, she was sat on the sofa, gift-less. “Oseye, I have something to tell you,” she said. “I didn’t find anything because there was too much to choose from”.

If you think about how beauty stores are designed, there is in fact a lot of choice. Choice is more abundant than it has ever been. Later on that day we had settled on getting mum a nail polish. She likes pink, but which shade of pink do we decide to get? Boatloads of Love? Stretch Your Wings? Spring Awakening? Sew Gifted? Spaghetti Strap? Eternal Optimist? It reminds me of ordering at a restaurant… or even dating for that matter… “Hello, can I get the uhhh…”

I’d like to talk about the psychology of choice and what our endless options mean for us.

What motivates consumers to buy?

According to Chernev et al. (2015), there are four key factors that motivate consumers to purchase goods: 1) When people want to make a quick and simple choice; 2) when the product is complex; 3) when it’s difficult to compare alternatives; and 4) when consumers don’t have preferences.

In a health and beauty store (Boots) | If I make this picture black and white, this may explain why it’s so hard to choose a shade of nail polish.

In a health and beauty store (Boots) | If I make this picture black and white, this may explain why it’s so hard to choose a shade of nail polish.

Excessive choice makes us feel overwhelmed.

Excessive choice is termed choice overload. The choice overload hypothesis states that an increase in the number of options we have to choose from may lead to negative consequences, i.e., a decrease in motivation to make a choice, and a decrease in satisfaction when finally choosing an option (Scheibehenne et al., 2010). Iyengar and Lepper (2000) carried out a study using an assortment of jams. In a food market, the researchers set up a table displaying 24 attractive and high quality jams.

After that, the researchers only placed 6 of the jams on display, limiting the choice of shoppers. Try and guess what display experienced more purchases. The researchers found that although shoppers were more interested in looking around the 24 jams, they were more likely to make a purchase from the display of 6 jams (up to ten times more). This indicates that shoppers are more likely to make a purchase if they have less to choose from (Iyengar & Lepper, 2000). What is more, the larger display of jams led to lower customer satisfaction than the smaller display. What’s your favourite jam flavour? Mine is strawberry.

Shoppers are more likely to make a purchase if they have less to choose from.

The rejection mindset.

Endless choice can also have a negative impact on online dating. According to Pronk and Denissen (2020), the more dating profiles people see, the more likely they are to reject them.

Brands have a large impact.

Misuraca et al. (2019) found that choice overload only appears in the absence of brand names, and disappears when all options present are brand names. Participants expressed more positive feelings such as higher satisfaction and higher enjoyment towards familiar brands, rather than unfamiliar brands, or no brand. Familiar brands were also associated with lower perceived task difficulty and decreased regret. This research implies that consumers prefer branded items when making a choice.

Later on, Misuraca et al. (2021) wanted to see if these results were similar among adolescents. The researchers found that choice overload disappeared among adolescents when facing either a large or a small amount of brand name options. However, when no brand names were present, adolescents reported choice overload (greater dissatisfaction and regret with larger assortments). Misuraca and colleagues suggest that current recommendations for displaying a smaller assortment of choice may not be as effective as it is thought to be.

Choice deprivation vs. overload.

Choice deprivation refers to when we have less choice than desired, and is the opposite to choice overload. Reutskaja et al. (2022) studied choice deprivation and overload across different countries; collectivistic (prioritises groups) and individualistic (prioritises individuals). The researchers found that choice deprivation was more likely to be experienced in collectivistic countries such as Brazil and India, and less so in Japan, China, and Russia. The USA, an individualistic country, was however associated with choice overload more than choice deprivation.

The findings of this study indicate that choice deprivation has a larger negative impact than choice overload on choice satisfaction. Participants reported that they preferred having an ideal amount of choice; not too much, and not too little, therefore the researchers suggest that marketers should focus on displaying the right amount of choice to consumers rather than too much (e.g., websites should show a set amount of products and consumers can be given the option to see less or more if they want). What is more, the researchers state that there should be great efforts made on lessening deprivation for those who live in scarcity.

Participants reported that they preferred having an ideal amount of choice; not too much, and not too little.

The eyes tell no lies.

It is likely that in the future, that more and more studies concerning choice may implement eye-tracking technology. Eye-tracking is a common procedure in marketing and retail research because it can measure a consumer’s attention. Eye-tracking technology can tell researchers where a participant’s attention is drawn to, how long they look at objects for, and how many times they look at an object (Bialkova et al., 2020). What is more, eye –tracking technology can be used in both the lab and in the field (i.e., stores, supermarkets, desktops, mobile phones, etc.), and it is non-invasive.

Fast fashion choice overload.

Fast fashion stores offer a lot of clothing. A lot. Due to this, Hwang et al. (2020) propose that there needs to be research carried out on what factors can decrease choice overload in fast fashion stores. Although consumers enjoy having options to explore, efforts should be made towards improving store layouts to help consumers navigate themselves around the abundance of products, and in order for consumers to not have to think too hard.

We ended up taking mum shopping on her birthday.

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Bialkova, S., Grunert, K.G., & van Trijp, H.C. (2020). From desktop to supermarket shelf: Eye-tracking exploration on consumer attention and choice. Food Quality and Preference, 81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodqual.2019.103839

Chernev, A., Böckenholt, U., & Goodman, J. K. (2015). Choice overload: A conceptual review and meta-analysis. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 25, 333-358. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2014.08.002

Hwang, J., Tung, T. & Cho, H. (2020). Too Many Choices? Consumer Behavior in Fast Fashion Stores. International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings, 77(1). https://doi.org/10.31274/itaa.12129

Iyengar, S. S. & Lepper, M. R. (2000). When choice is demotivating: Can one desire too much of a good thing? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79(6), 995-1006. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.79.6.995

Misuraca, R., Ceresia, F., Teuscher, U., & Faraci, P. (2019). The Role of the Brand on Choice Overload. Mind & Society: Cognitive Studies in Economics and Social Sciences, 18(1), 57-76. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11299-019-00210-7

Misuraca, R., Ceresia, F., Nixon, A.E., & Scaffidi Abbate, C. (2021). "When is more really more? The effect of brands on choice overload in adolescents". Journal of Consumer Marketing, 38(2), 168-177. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCM-08-2020-4021

Pronk, T. M. & Denissen, J. J. A. (2020). A Rejection Mind-Set: Choice Overload in Online Dating. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 11(3), 388-396. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550619866189

Reutskaja, E., Cheek, N. N., Iyengar, S., & Schwartz, B. (2022). Choice Deprivation, Choice Overload, and Satisfaction with Choices Across Six Nations. Journal of International Marketing, 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069031X211073821

Scheibehenne, B., Greifeneder, R., & Todd, P. M. (2010). Can There Ever Be Too Many Options? A Meta-Analytic Review of Choice Overload. Journal of Consumer Research, 37(3), 409-425, https://doi.org/10.1086/651235

MBTI Fashion

No, you can’t wear that.

When I first started Psychology, But Make It Fashion, many people wanted to know how to dress according to their MBTI. I was taken aback. Back in its infancy, MBTI YouTube Shorts were the most popular videos on the PBMIF YouTube channel! (Thou shall not be found anymore). A lot of people disliked the Shorts; and gave them an actual thumbs down! You'll see why in a bit. I thought wow people really like this thing... Its popularity is mind-boggling.

Actual questions asked: Can you write an article on MBTI fashion? Can you tell me how the MBTI types dress? How should I dress according to my MBTI? How should an ENFP dress? Is MBTI fashion real? Can I use the MBTI to style my clients? Should I not wear dresses anymore?

In order to deter such questions from being asked again, I have decided to write about it.

Does our personality determine our style? Surely it does, right?

Have you ever heard of MBTI? Has anyone ever asked you for your MBTI, and then told you that they can’t hang out with you anymore because, according to their MBTI, you’re not compatible with them? 💔

It kind of reminds me of astrology and horoscopes. Don’t get me wrong, I’m fine with people who have an interest in horoscopes and compatibility and all that. But please, don’t let it hinder you from potentially making great relationships with others. Please do not base your whole personality on four letters that you got from taking a five minute quiz.

You're most certainly a multi-dimensional and unique individual that can't be placed into a small box.

I've also seen that it's been used for job screening in some countries. What?! Imagine being turned down for an interview because you were an I and not an E... Because does that really matter out of all things? *face palm*

It's also so mysterious how it's so popular in countries such as South Korea... Mega popular. Well, it's definitely a conversation starter for sure.

What is MBTI?

Now, MBTI stands for Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, it’s named after its creators. The focus of MBTI is to categorise people according to the way they think and act based on four dimensions: introversion vs. extraversion; sensing vs. intuition; thinking vs. feeling; and judging vs. perceiving. When you take the MBTI personality test you will end up with a string of 4 letters, one letter from each dimension (in bold) (e.g., ESTP).

That’s great and all, but what about it?

The MBTI is based upon Carl Jung’s (unsupported) theories that are not so regarded in psychology today.

The dichotomies fail to make sense. Why should I have to fit in one or the other alone, and not both?

Not only that, the test delivers inconsistent results.

Someone somewhere probably: Why am I INFJ today when I was INTJ last month?!?!

There is little to no research in psychology on the MBTI because psychology journals basically just have no concern for it. Stein and Swan (2019), sum up the MBTI quite well with its involvement in psychology, “MBTI's continued popularity says about how the general public might evaluate scientific theories. Presumably, a purpose of the field of psychology is to assist the general public in becoming psychologically literate. Unfortunately, the ideas about psychology that gain the most traction with the public can lack theoretical rigor.

"MBTI lacks agreement with known data, lacks testability, and suffers from internal contradictions.

"Today the administration and interpretation of the MBTI is a huge business and force in shaping the general public's perceptions of psychology.”

In other words, psychology nowadays aims to be as scientific as possible, but one of the most popular ideas in psychology is not. Psychology, the science of the mind, has had a tough time being recognised as a science.

Why should I have to fit in one or the other alone, and not both?

According to Stromberg and Caswell (2015), the test is just simply for entertainment. I wasn’t surprised at all when I found literally no research on MBTI and fashion.

To answer the question, MBTI (fashion) is rather nonsense - but it could do with a lot of tweaking... and actual research not carried out by big businesses for profit.

If you're an MBTI fan, and you like the MBTI ~vibes~, and you want to dress like your MBTI, by all means go ahead. As long as you're comfortable - Dress however you want - Your fashion is yours to explore - that's the PBMIF philosophy, and always will be.

The PBMIF slogan isn't curiosity is the best outfit for nothing!

Rather, take a look at the Big Five Model of personality... What could this say about your fashion sense?

The Big Five model is one of the most popular models of personality. It concerns five personality traits (openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism (OCEAN)), as the measure of personality. A lot of research has been carried out on this model. The Big Five is predictive for things such as relationship satisfaction, education, and job performance, whereas the MBTI is not, at all. The model demonstrates replicability across different cultures and test-retest reliability. The Big Five is currently the dominant model of personality in the literature (Feher & Vernon, 2021).

Take the Big Five personality test here and see if the results of this research matches your style.

The Big Five is a self-report personality test. There are 50 short statements to answer. Your results will be displayed in a bar chart showing the level of each trait. There are five traits. The lower the bar, the lower the trait.

Stolovy (2021) explored the relationships between clothing practices, personality, and body image among women using the Big Five model. 792 surveys were received from women from both urban and rural areas in one country, with a mean age of 42 years. Two thirds of the sample were married women, and just over half were mothers. Over 80% of participants stated that they had an academic degree, and a majority considered themselves as non-religious.

The researcher found that:

Conscientiousness was related with a classic style of dress; formal, conventional and representative. Do you dress formally? Conscientiousness is associated with organisation, punctuality, and reliability.

Those who scored low on agreeableness were related with a unique style of dress. Agreeableness is associated with a person’s tendency to put others’ needs above their own, warmth, and cooperation. Considering this, it is more likely that these participants did not care what others thought about their style.

On the other hand, extraversion was related with an urban style of dress (playful and eclectic). According to the Big Five model, extraversion is associated with being a people person, outgoingness, and sociability in general.

Those who scored high on openness were related with an urban style of dress as well. Openness to experience is associated with creativeness and curiosity.

Does your style reflect your personality or maybe not...?

This study indicates that personality traits influence our clothing choices, and highlights the importance of the psychology of dress, a neglected area of research (Stolovy, 2021). It would be quite interesting to see this study replicated cross culturally, and with men as the sample.

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Feher, A. & Vernon, P. A. (2021). Looking beyond the Big Five: A selective review of alternatives to the Big Five model of personality. Personality and Individual Differences, 169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2020.110002

Stein, R. & Swan, A. B. (2019). Evaluating the validity of Myers-Briggs Type Indicator theory: A teaching tool and window into intuitive psychology. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 13(2). https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12434

Stolovy, T. (2021). Styling the Self: Clothing Practices, Personality Traits, and Body Image Among Women. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.719318

Stromberg, J. & Caswell, E. (2015, Oct 08). Why the Myers-Briggs test is totally meaningless. Vox. https://www.vox.com/2014/7/15/5881947/myers-briggs-personality-test-meaningless

Why Do We Dress Like Other People?

Let's be real, we've all been there. One minute you're scrolling through TikTok, and the next you're deep-diving into online forums and fan accounts trying to find out where your favourite influencer got their latest outfit. Don't even try to deny it – you've probably at some point typed "Where is Molly-Mae Hague's _________ from" into a search bar at least once, no?

So, what's the deal? Why are we, whether consciously or unconsciously, so inclined to dress like other people? Why does everyone dress the same? Let's break the psychology of it all down.

Sometimes, We Just Like What They're Wearing!

The simplest explanation is often the most accurate: We genuinely like an item of clothing worn by someone else. Whether it's Dua Lipa's tank top you've seen on "Steal Her Style" or a pair of trainers with the perfect silhouette a random influencer is wearing on your Instagram explore page, if we appreciate the aesthetic, we naturally want to incorporate it into our own wardrobes. This could simply be a coincidental alignment of taste, rather than a deliberate act of imitation.

The Unconscious Act of Imitation

Fashion imitation refers to the act of copying, or emulating, the clothing styles, trends, or specific items worn by others.

Have you ever noticed how you and your friends might suddenly gravitate towards similar fashion pieces, like baggy oversized jeans? This phenomenon of copying the clothing of others in society was explored by Malik and Zaheer (2013). Their study interviewed 14 female participants, aged 18-50, to understand the inspirations behind their clothing styles. Participants cited friends, celebrities, magazines, and TV shows as key influences.

Interestingly, none of the respondents explicitly admitted to copying or trying to imitate the style of others. The research suggests that this imitation might occur unknowingly. While participants engaged in this behaviour, they also attempted to maintain a sense of uniqueness by making small alterations to their chosen styles (in today's space think bag charms, Labubus, etc.). A few participants also indicated that if they liked an item worn by someone else, they were inclined to purchase it immediately. Furthermore, the study observed that women sometimes spent more on clothing to maintain their status within society and to receive praise at social gatherings, highlighting the social motivations behind fashion choices.

The "Chameleon Effect": Mimicry and Social Belonging

Our tendency to dress like others can also be attributed to the chameleon effect. According to Chartrand and Bargh (1999), this is an unconscious phenomenon where individuals mirror the behaviours, postures, mannerisms, facial expressions, and other actions of those they interact with. Essentially, we subconsciously align ourselves with the people around us. Hmm.

From a fashion perspective, this means we might start dressing similarly to others in order to fit in. The desire to avoid standing out or feeling like we don't belong in a crowd can be a powerful motivator. Proximity plays a significant role in mimicry; the more frequently we encounter someone, the more likely we are to adopt their behaviours and mannerisms, including their clothing choices. Mimicry serves a valuable social function, as it can strengthen rapport, foster liking, promote prosocial behaviour, and enhance empathy (Chartrand & Lakin, 2013).

However, mimicking can also have negative consequences for consumer behaviour. White and Argo (2011) found that if an individual observes someone close to them, such as a friend or sibling, showing interest in or owning a clothing item that they themselves really like, that item can suddenly become unappealing. This is driven by consumers' intrinsic desire to appear and feel unique. This psychological dynamic can help explain the cyclical nature of fashion trends, as popular items may quickly lose their appeal once they become too popular.

Social Learning Theory: Learning Through Observation

From a young age, humans learn through observation and interaction. This is a form of trial-and-error learning where we observe outcomes and adjust our behaviour accordingly. For instance, if you witness someone performing a silly action and subsequently getting reprimanded (told off), you are unlikely to replicate that action yourself.

This principle extends to our clothing choices. If you observe someone wearing a particular garment and receiving praise or positive attention for it, and you also desire similar affirmation, social learning theory suggests you are more likely to adopt that clothing item. The anticipation of positive reinforcement influences our clothing decisions.

Appearance Management: The Influence of Digital Creators

The rise of digital content creators and/or influencers has profoundly impacted how we perceive and manage our appearance. Park and Chun (2020) highlighted that Gen Z (Generation Z), in particular, heavily engages with fashion YouTubers, often seeking to emulate their appearance and overall persona. YouTube, as a platform, offers personalised content selection, allowing viewers to consistently engage with their preferred creators. YouTubers frequently produce content, providing viewers ample opportunity to become accustomed to their mannerisms, habits, and behaviours.

Park and Chun's (2020) study examined the influence of YouTube on 15 women aged 15-25 regarding their perception of appearance. Through interviews, the researchers discovered that participants not only wished to look like their favourite fashion YouTubers but also sought to align with their behaviours. YouTubers effectively assist their viewers in appearance management, often presenting themselves as friendly, honest, attractive, and open. This cultivates a sense of admiration, prompting viewers to aspire to emulate those they admire.

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Ultimately, our clothing choices are influenced by a complex interplay of psychological factors, from our unconscious desire to fit in, to our conscious admiration of public figures. Understanding these underlying mechanisms offers valuable insights into the dynamics of fashion consumer behaviour.

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Chartrand, T. L. & Bargh, J. A. (1999). The chameleon effect: The perception–behavior link and social interaction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76(6), 893-910. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.76.6.893

Chartrand, T. L. & Lakin, J. L. (2013). The antecedents and consequences of human behavioral mimicry. Annual Review of Psychology, 64, 285-308.

Malik, R. K. & Zaheer, N. (2013). Imitative Behavior of Women in the Selection of Clothing. Journal of Basic and Applied Scientific Research, 3(5), 429-439.

Park, J. & Chun, J. (2020). How does watching YouTube fashion content impact perception of appearance: a phenomenological study of Korean women in Generation Z. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 7, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-020-00652-2

White, K. & Argo, J. J. (2011). When Imitation Doesn’t Flatter: The Role of Consumer Distinctiveness in Responses to Mimicry. Journal of Consumer Research, 38, 667-680. https://doi.org/10.1086/660187

What’s The Deal With T-Shirt Slogans?

I found myself in the men’s section of H&M with a mission to look for a new white T-shirt (not like I own a handful already). You can’t go wrong with a crisp white T-shirt… tucked in, ironed sleeves. Well at least that’s what my girlfriend says. On that note, my girlfriend also says that I’m incapable of buying clothes for myself, which is certainly untrue. As I walked around the store looking for a simple plain white T-shirt, I could not find any existence of a plain white T-shirt, but instead was trapped in a sea of T-shirts and hoodies with all of these cute, positive, inspiring, and motivational quotes.

YEAH, YOU TELL ‘EM

“Do Good & Be Nice: The Wave of The Future”. How does this slogan make you feel? How do you interpret it? What exactly is it referring to? Does it actually inspire you? In my opinion, I totally dig this slogan. It makes me feel encouraged to be a good and wholesome person, help others out, pet puppies, to stop taking 20-ish minute showers, and to recycle (although these feelings last for a brief moment).

You can be, to put it politely, the most annoying individual on earth, yet spread positivity to others just by wearing a T-shirt with a slogan.

These T-shirts have got me thinking, is there any point in having slogans on our clothing? Do these slogans actually get a message across or is it just for the purpose of style? Why might someone choose to wear an article of clothing featuring slogans? How do others interpret our T-shirts in particular?

What is a slogan? A slogan is a short phrase or sentence that is usually memorable and commonly adopted by sportswear and fast fashion brands, and their products, in order to create a positive image and differentiate themselves from competitors. Indeed, there is a point to clothing with slogans – slogans can help us say things (important or not) and can help us to make a statement (to express an opinion on a matter of great importance, not a fashion statement), without us having to open our mouths. Slogans can also help us to express our individual style.

Smile again? You what?

So, is there research on T-shirt slogans? Yes there is, who knew? Recently, Tong and Su (2022) examined lots and lots of T-shirt slogans (500+ slogans from 180 clothing brands) and found that young people love slogan T-shirts. The findings of the study also suggest that T-shirt slogans for strong brands are generally better liked than slogans for weak brands. My favourite slogan from this study has got to be “Shoes & Spaghetti” by H&M.

There’s also recently been a study on Turkish language teachers’ awareness of T-shirts (i.e., Savaşkan, 2022). The teachers were asked questions about their opinions on T-shirts. When deciding to purchase a T-shirt, colour and style were the most important factors, whereas less than a quarter of teachers cared about a T-shirt’s text. Many teachers were fond and familiar with the T-shirts they owned. If they were to wear a T-shirt with text on it, it would need to be sensible. If the text was in a foreign language, they would make sure to find out what it meant in case it was inappropriate. If the text was ridiculous, they wouldn’t bother to wear it. The researcher recommends that consumers should be more mindful of what slogans say on their clothing because it can leave a bad impression or send the wrong message to others, especially if the wearer doesn’t know what it means.

On that note, wearing a T-shirt with text or graphics can affect how people will interact with you. Gurung et al. (2018) set out to find whether graphics on clothing influence our perceptions and behavioural intentions. The researchers found that participants were less likely to want to interact with those dressed in sexually suggestive T-shirts compared to those in athletic, ‘nerdy’, or blank T-shirts.

Now, all I wanted was a simple white T-shirt. But has there been research on white T-shirts? Yes, Tassell et al. (2022) conducted a study on the consequences of wearing a T-shirt either labelled as ‘sustainable’ or ‘unsustainable’ on our wellbeing. A group of participants were to wear a plain white T-shirt either stating “this T-shirt is UNSUSTAINABLE/SUSTAINABLE”. Participants who wore the ‘sustainable’ T-shirt reported a higher level of positive feelings compared to those wearing an ‘unsustainable’ T-shirt. This implies that wearing sustainable clothing has the potential to make us feel more positive.

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Still haven’t found a plain white T-shirt yet, nope.

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Gurung, R. A. R., Stoa, R., Nelson, A., & Schultz, D. (2018). The influence of T-shirt graphics on perceptions and behavioral intentions. The Journal of Social Psychology, 159(3), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224545.2018.1491471

Savaşkan, V. (2022). Are We Aware of What We Wear? The Awareness of Pre-Service Turkish Language Teachers About T-Shirt Catch-Phrases. Education Quarterly Reviews, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.31014/aior.1993.05.01.418

Tassell, C., Bardey, A., & Schat, A. (2022). How to wear happiness: Impact of wearing clothing labelled sustainable or fast fashion on subjective well-being. International Journal of Sustainable Fashion & Textiles, 1(1), 63-80. https://doi.org/10.1386/sft/0004_1

Tong, X. & Su, J. (2022). Exploring T-shirt slogans by content and thematic analysis. International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology and Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/17543266.2022.2032383

Revamping Retail

I’m a Gen Z, and over the years I have found that my preference for shopping at shopping centres and malls is greatly diminishing. I would say it’s due to ridiculous car parking costs, nowhere interesting to eat (Maccy D’s is not going to cut it), crowds, closed down stores, trampled clothes all over shop floors, graffiti, metres of shopfront shutters, and long queues. Why bother to go to a mall when you can shop from the comfort of your sofa… and not have to interact with a single soul?

Y’ALL STILL SHOP IN PERSON?

When I talk about shopping centres, I am collectively talking about shopping centres, malls, and areas that people can shop. I’ve been incredibly lucky to have visited many shopping centres over my lifetime. Each have their own interesting qualities and dare I say, vibes. I recently had the pleasure of going to a handful of shopping centres in Europe. Totally different vibes compared to shopping centres in the UK. There were things to do, there were a variety of stores for all ages, the customer service was generous, clothes weren’t scattered all over the floor, the food courts had actual vendors, and there were functioning toilets! What can shopping centres do in the UK to win my affections once more?

Be pleasant and welcoming

In general, what draws people to shopping centres is a variety of stores and a pleasant environment (Calvo-Porral & Lévy-Mangín, 2018). It has been found that in the UK, those who find their shopping experience pleasurable and enjoyable at their local shopping centre are more likely to return/have the desire to return some time in the future (Hart et al., 2007). No surprise there. Who would want to revisit somewhere with limited accessibility, restrooms that are unclean, poor customer service, and unappealing stores? I would like to see signs, cool attractions, abundant lighting, greenery, places to sit, bins, wide corridors, nice smells, and nice views.

Encourage me

It has been found that the longer it takes for a shopper to get to a shopping destination, the longer they are to spend at the shopping destination (Baghaee et al., 2021). It makes sense. Therefore, shopping centres that I don’t live near should encourage me to travel to them. Put ads out, look nice, tell me what makes you different to all the others, and give me benefits. I’ll find a way to visit you.

Think about younger shoppers

Bawa et al. (2019) explored young shoppers’ experiences of mall shopping. Young shoppers are likely to spend, at most, 3 hours shopping at a time. That’s quite a lot of hours. Young shoppers greatly appreciate the convenience of having everything under one roof. Having everything under one roof means that everything is accessible in one place, and that poor weather can’t interrupt the shopping experience. “Oh, you want to go to that Thai restaurant? It’s not in the centre, it’s a twenty minute walk and you’ll have to cross 3 and a half roads.” Choice is also super important for young shoppers in terms of being able to access a variety of brands. Young shoppers also greatly appreciate the hedonic aspects (joyful experiences) associated with malls such as browsing, play areas, spending time with friends and family, and viewing shows and exhibitions. I always liked the smell of popcorn lingering around. A shopping centre should be a fun and exciting place to hang out and do different things.

The closer, the better

It has been found that consumers with limited access to shops purchase more online (Maat & Konings, 2018). By shopping online, no time or money is spent on travelling to shopping destinations. Therefore, it would be great if shopping centres could open locally to stop me from opening up my MacBook and clicking away.

Don't bother me (too much)

When I go shopping, I don’t generally like to be approached by others nor approach others myself. I like to avoid kiosks at all costs. If I see someone that looks like they’re going to approach me, I will pretend I can’t see them and speed walk away. Runyan et al. (2012) found that the presence of kiosks in malls can negatively affect a shopper’s shopping experience. Obviously if I run away from you, you can’t sell a product to me. If kiosks are to be present, they should be positioned near stores that offer similar goods (Runyan et al., 2012). In contrast, according to Medrano et al. (2016), many shoppers find courteous attention an important aspect of shopping. Therefore the researchers recommend that stores should train their staff to acknowledge shoppers and be able to offer them a personalised and professional service without getting too intimate (Medrano et al., 2016).

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Baghaee, S., Nosratabadi, S., Aram, F., & Mosavi, A. (2021). Driving factors behind the social role of retail centers on recreational activities. Cogent Business & Management, 8(1), https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2021.1905218

Bawa, R., Sinha, A. & Kant, R. (2019). Emerging Mall Culture and Shopping Behavior of Young Consumers. Advances in Anthropology, 9, 125-150. https://doi.org/ 10.4236/aa.2019.93010

Calvo-Porral, C. & Lévy-Mangín, J.-P. (2018). Pull factors of the shopping malls: an empirical study. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 46(2), 110-124. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJRDM-02-2017-0027

Hart, C., Farrell, A. M., Stachow, G., Reed, G., & Cadogan, J. W. (2007). Enjoyment of the Shopping Experience: Impact on Customers' Repatronage Intentions and Gender Influence. The Service Industries Journal, 27(5), 583-604. https://doi.org/10.1080/02642060701411757

Maat, K. & Konings, R. (2018). Accessibility or Innovation? Store Shopping Trips versus Online Shopping. Transportation Research Record, 2672(50), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1177/0361198118794044

Medrano, N., Olarte-Pascual, C., Pelegrín-Borondo, J., & Sierra-Murillo, Y. (2016). Consumer Behavior in Shopping Streets: The Importance of the Salesperson's Professional Personal Attention. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 125. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00125

Runyan, R., Kim, J. & Baker, J. (2012). The mall as bazaar: How kiosks influence consumer shopping behaviour. Journal of Marketing Management, 28, 1, 85-102. https://doi.org/10.1080/0267257X.2011.621442

Have You Seen A Plus-Size Mannequin Before?

The shop window can be seen as a “microcosm of consumer culture that reflects it’s changing ideals and also how those changes might affect the desires of the consumer” (Engdahl & Gelang, 2019). Behind these shop windows we can usually find mannequins which are more than just a block of moulded fibre glass and plastic.

I AIN’T NEVER SEEN A PLUS-SIZE MANNEQUIN BEFORE.

Whilst wandering through a department store, I happened to come across a not so typical male mannequin. “Is that a plus-size male mannequin?” I gasped under my breath to my cousin. (Yes, we all get excited over different things). The thing is, I had never seen a plus-size male mannequin in person although I have an active interest in body image research as a third year Psychology student. It was a big deal to me because it’s a sign of progression and inclusion in a very promising, yet under-delivering, fashion industry.

Plus-size is a term predominantly used in ‘the West’ (North America and Europe) and typically refers to a size of clothing designed for people who are larger than average (according to the Cambridge Dictionary as of mid-2022). There is generally a lack of consensus on the definition of plus-size and also what size range plus-size applies to. Presently, plus-size research has mainly focused on women, whether it be women’s experiences of being plus-size or on women’s plus-size bodies in the media. Despite this positive progress, many consumers, models, and supporters of body positivity question why similar research concerning plus-size men hasn’t gained traction as of yet when plus-size men certainly exist (Thompson & McKinney, 2020). Many of those who regard themselves as ‘plus-size’ feel rather neglected by clothing retailers in terms of genuine representation and accessibility to quality clothing.

Back to the topic of mannequins, after conducting a study on the size of mannequins used in high street fashion retailers in the UK, Robinson and Aveyard (2017) highlighted that on average, female mannequins were underweight, potentially promoting unrealistic body ideals. In comparison, a number of male mannequins appeared to be unrealistically muscular.

What is more, mannequin research also suggests that female mannequins have negative consequences for both male and female consumers low in appearance self-esteem (Argo & Dahl, 2018). Consumers who are lower in appearance self-esteem evaluate products displayed by mannequins more negatively compared to those with higher appearance self-esteem. If a consumer cannot reach the unattainable beauty standard of a mannequin, why bother wearing what it’s wearing too?

There is one reason why plus-size mannequins aren’t mainstream – and it may be due to stigma towards plus-size and obese models. According to research by Aagerup (2022), individuals’ implicit associations towards obese models do not reflect the positive attitudes that they openly express. In other words, people may say, “Yeah, I’m okay with plus-size models, love ‘em”, but it may not be reflective of how they really feel.

Recently, research has shown that the use of models with diverse body sizes in fashion advertising can have a positive effect on brand attitude (Joo & Wu, 2021). That being the case, Aagerup (2022) posits that brands only use (a handful of) untraditional models to not only project an inclusive and relatable image, but to also reduce the likelihood of criticism from consumers and body positivity activists.

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Aagerup, U. (2022). Men’s and women’s implicit negativity towards obese fashion models. Journal of Global Fashion Marketing, 13(3), 273-288. https://doi.org/10.1080/20932685.2021.1977164

Argo, J. J. & Dahl, D. W. (2018). Standards of Beauty: The Impact of Mannequins in the Retail Context. Journal of Consumer Research, 44(5), 974-990. https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucx072

Engdahl, E. & Gelang, M. (2019). The changing ethos and personae of shop-window mannequins within consumer culture: Expressions of gendered embodiment. Journal of Consumer Culture, 19(1), 21-46. https://doi.org/10.1177/1469540516668228

Joo, B. R., & Wu, J. (2021). The impact of inclusive fashion advertising with plus-size models on female consumers: The mediating role of brand warmth. Journal of Global Fashion Marketing, 12(3), 260-273. https://doi.org/10.1080/20932685.2021.1905021

Robinson, E. & Aveyard, P. (2017). Emaciated mannequins: a study of mannequin body size in high street fashion stores. Journal of Eating Disorders, 5, (13). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-017-0142-6

Thompson, M. L. & McKinney, E. C. (2020). “The Men’s Plus Size Apparel Market: Bigger, but Not Better”. International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings, 77(1). https://doi.org/10.31274/itaa.12036

How To Design A Shoe Store?

This is a shoe store (if you haven’t guessed already). You may either find it eerie and clinical due to its bareness and white interior, or you may just find it your cup of tea… neat and orderly. Because all of the shoes are so tidily positioned, it would feel wrong to just pick one up and take a look at it as if a security guard will approach you immediately and tell you to leave the store. Certainly, the lighting makes it even eerier.

AM I ALLOWED TO MOVE A SHOE OR WILL YOU LIKE… GET MAD AT ME?

A store’s design can greatly influence a consumer’s shopping experience and buying behaviour. There’s a lot of thoroughly thought about factors that come into play concerning a store’s design (including visual merchandising), so that items can be seen at the right place and time for you to pick up and put in your basket, consequently increasing the store’s profits. A good store design will use space efficiently and guide consumers where to go.

Much existing consumer research on store design has mainly focused on food retail and not fashion. Research concerning store design in a fashion context is slowly beginning to crop up however. For example, Jang et al. (2018) found that consumers respond differently to visual complexity in a fashion store design depending on their level of fashion involvement. The visual complexity of a fashion store’s design can affect a consumer’s arousal state. A store high in visual complexity is sure to be decorated with patterns on walls, floors, ceilings, and fixtures, and has freely arranged furniture and displays as opposed to a grid-like layout. Jang and colleagues (2018) suggest that regardless of a consumer’s involvement with fashion, stores with high visual complexity are likely to have a positive impact on consumers’ arousal. The researchers found differences between those highly involved in fashion to those who aren’t so keen. Consumers who are greatly interested in fashion feel pleasure when exposed to highly complex visual store designs. However, consumers with little interest in fashion were found to have greater pleasure in a store with low visual complexity than in a store with high visual complexity. There are drawbacks to not having a passion for fashion it seems. In addition, a really boring and plain store environment will make consumers bored and uninterested.

Concerning visual merchandising displays themselves, what is noticed by a consumer is generally subliminal and is influenced by personal preferences, gender, display quality, and contextual and sensory characteristics (Hefer & Cant, 2013). Consumers are attentive to well designed and logical displays that take colour, design, scents, sounds, and space into account. If an item is in an odd place or a consumer cannot find an item displayed in store, it’s not likely to make a consumer particularly happy. Whereas women are more observant of all factors in a store’s design, men tend to focus just on signs to help them find products in a store (Hefer & Cant, 2013).

What is recommended to positively enhance a consumer’s shopping experience in a store? Stores should consider adopting visual merchandising elements known to attract consumers and stimulate arousal such as a communication factor (e.g., digital screen displays) to provide useful information for consumers and advertise products, new product displays, logo signage on an interior focal wall to enhance consumers’ brand engagement, seating, and a welcoming entrance/exterior featuring signage, interesting lighting, and props such as plants (Kim & Lee, 2021).

Interestingly, research has been carried out on shoe stores specifically (i.e., Allahdadi & Shokri, 2018). Consumers find places to sit one of the most important factors of a shoe store… that makes sense. Along with that, wide space between displays are also appreciated. The researchers also make note that it is beneficial for shoe stores to implement ‘cool tone’ colours such as greys, blues, greens, and violets to let the shoes shine.

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Allahdadi, M. & Shokri, P. (2018). Interior design of shoe stores and its impact on customer satisfaction. International Conference on Design (Interaction between Industrial design and Interior design).

Hefer, Y. & Cant, M. C. (2013). Visual Merchandising Displays Effect On Consumers: A Valuable Asset Or An Unnecessary Burden For Apparel Retailers. International Business & Economics Research Journal, 12(10), 1217-1224. https://doi.org/10.19030/iber.v12i10.8132

Jang, J. Y., Baek, E., Yoon, S. Y., & Choo, H. J. (2018). Store design: Visual complexity and consumer responses. International Journal of Design, 12(2), 105-118.

Kim, N. & Lee, H. (2021). Assessing Consumer Attention and Arousal Using Eye-Tracking Technology in Virtual Retail Environment. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 665658. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.665658

How AI Can Be Used In Fashion

SUMMON.

Fashion and AI. They're in their honeymoon phase. What will the fashion industry become with AI?

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If you've been on YouTube recently, you might have seen 'By Balenciaga' AI generated videos depicting characters from popular franchises such as Star Wars and The Avengers, to Disney Princesses and Resident Evil.

The original video, titled Harry Potter by Balenciaga (demonflyingfox), is mesmerising. The 54 second video features characters from Harry Potter who are rather modelesque, tilting their heads as the camera pans towards their faces. These visuals are accompanied by an electronic track called "Lightvessel" by Thip Trong.

It feels like a real campaign video that a luxury fashion house would make.

How do these videos make you feel? Is it creepy?

When a 'robot’s' appearance becomes a nearly perfect human representation, but is still distinguishable from it, people react very negatively towards it. We feel somewhat repulsed, and maybe even disgust. This is referred to as the uncanny valley (Złotowski et al., 2015).

Balenciaga, if you didn't know already, is a Span- Wait, I mean a French luxury fashion house. At the end of 2022, they stirred up controversy by creating an insanely inappropriate campaign which you've probably already heard of. Balenciaga is owned by Kering, who also own fashion houses such as Bottega Veneta, Gucci, and Alexander McQueen.

The general public already believe that Balenciaga is a large player in driving digital fashion along with other brands not limited to Dior, Louis Vuitton, and Nike (Zou et al., 2022).

AI is short for artificial intelligence.

AI is defined as “the use of computational machinery to emulate capabilities inherent in humans, such as doing physical or mechanical tasks, thinking, and feeling” (Huang & Rust, 2021, p. 31).

ChatGPT is an AI chatbot that answers life's real important questions... Self driving cars use AI so you can do more important things than actually driving...? Alexa uses AI to listen to your secrets...

With the recent advancements in AI, it's important to understand how audiences react to these.

AI is highly likely to become commonplace in fashion.

As of March 2023, Levi's have shared that they are considering to use AI generated clothing models alongside real models in order to 'diversify' and allow their clothes to be seen on a multitude of body types, sizes, ages, and skin colours, rather than on one model only. And I thought there were 8 billion people on the planet...

Recently, fashion retailer Revolve created an AI generated billboard ad because why not?

Metaverse fashion week is a thing because attending events in real life is just so last year.

There are talks of body scanners being developed that accurately assess clothing measurements reducing the need to return items.

Virtual try-on experiences, augmented reality, design methods, and trend forecasting... the list goes on but I don't have all day.

Innovative or a nuisance?

It's a fair assumption to make that consumers who are more positive about AI and technology, and those with higher fashion involvement would be more open to the use of AI in fashion, although they may be wary of it initially (Liang et al., 2020).

Research suggests that we think about virtual fashion rather positively (Zou et al., 2022).

It's a long shot, but AI in fashion could maybe help to reduce some negative environmental impacts of fashion. Less need for deliveries, less travelling to different countries for fashion week in your private jets of course, less clothing returns... AI unfortunately uses a lot of electricity. Do you know where electricity comes from?

AI might help us to convey the exact emotions and characteristics that we want to, to others. Exuberant, innovative, and out of this world designs and concepts can be easier to create and display as they were originally intended to without barriers and limitations such as mechanics, human error, and well... humans. A Barbie doll's head can turn 360 degrees, but a human's can't.

While AI itself may not be able to think outside the box (just yet), AI in fashion can also be used to help aid human imagination and creativity by suggesting creative ideas and solutions.

AI can be very useful for people who cannot engage with fashion easily. Being able to access clothing virtually allows fashion to be more accessible. For instance, it can be useful for people with disabilities, body confidence matters, and help people to step over the boundary of geographic location.

AI gets us talking. As you've seen with the Balenciaga AI video by demonflyingfox, and the video's copycats, we, the general public, are quite accepting and willing to share and talk about AI on social media. The video went viral within a couple of days. We have a great interest in AI and are curious to see its developments.

AI seems to have great advantages for the fashion industry at the moment, but when is enough, enough?

Things are changing... and rather quickly.

Thank you for reading.

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Huang, M. H., & Rust, R. T. (2021). A strategic framework for artificial intelligence in marketing. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 49(1), 30-50. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-020-00749-9

Liang, Y., Lee, S-H., & Workman, J. E. (2020). Implementation of Artificial Intelligence in Fashion: Are Consumers Ready? Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, 38(1), 3-18. https://doi.org/10.1177/0887302X19873437

Złotowski, J. A., Sumioka, H., Nishio, S., Glas, D. F., Bartneck, C., and Ishiguro, H. (2015). Persistence of the uncanny valley: the influence of repeated interactions and a robot's attitude on its perception. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, 883. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00883

Zou, Y., Luh, D-B., & Lu, S. (2022). Public perceptions of digital fashion: An analysis of sentiment and Latent Dirichlet Allocation topic modeling. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 986838. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.986838

Why Do Influencers Wear Makeup?

What comes to mind when you think of the word 'makeup'?

Is it joy, bank account, celebrity makeup lines, influencers, brushes, animal cruelty, lip gloss, a specific eyeshadow palette, a specific shade maybe(?), imperfections, toxic, eco beauty, oversaturated, trends, can't live without, cosmetics, wipes, or how about self-esteem?

MAKEUP MAKEUP MAKEUP

Makeup is what most of us are introduced to once we enter our pre-teen years. My earliest memories of makeup is probably when I was four or five, taking my mother's eyeliner and using it to (naughtily) draw (beautiful artwork) all over my parents' bedroom drawers and dresser.

Makeup can be bad.

I recently saw The Dark Secret Behind Your Favourite Makeup Products by Refinery29 and it really got me thinking about the why. Why do we not pay attention to where our beauty products come from? Why are we putting all of these chemicals on our faces? Why do we allow the exploitation of vulnerable children and young people? Why can't brands be more transparent?

Makeup can literally go bad as well. Makeup can have toxic ingredients and pose a risk to our health. Makeup costs money. Makeup when not applied properly can make us feel unskilful and the opposite of what we want to actually feel. Makeup can make us feel self-conscious. Seeing other people wear makeup makes us question whether we should wear it ourselves.

Makeup can only do so much.

Makeup can be great as well. It can allow us to express our individuality, cover our perceived 'imperfections', make us feel confident, helps us to practise our motor skills, possibly allow us to be 'perceived' as more attractive, and also to define or refine our features, as long as it's applied correctly though. Makeup can be therapeutic too; the act of applying makeup can be relaxing as well as watching someone else apply it.

But the question we would like to answer today is... why do we really use makeup?

Today we look at a journal article called: Paint a Better Mood? Effects of Makeup Use on YouTube Beauty Influencers’ Self-Esteem. Tran and colleagues (2020) studied the motivations of nine female beauty influencers on YouTube from the United States and Great Britain concerning makeup use, using Jacobsen's (2006) Framework for Aesthetic Processing to explore their responses. This post is inspired by this research.

Makeup is pushed by society

External messages from society regarding beauty are impacted by family, culture, and social roles. The society we grow up in can shape how we feel about makeup. We wear makeup because we're constantly bombarded with new makeup trends. Social media such as Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok allows us to stay updated with the latest makeup trends. We feel pressure to conform to these trends, otherwise if we don't, we endure FOMO (the fear of missing out). Makeup trends change frequently in society, so what might be in today might not be in next month. Makeup is a reflection of the era we're in and how trends can change and return.

Makeup builds communities

Makeup has a lot of power to build wonderful communities. When we have an interest in something, we find out more about it. In this sense, we join beauty forums, watch videos on makeup hauls, and watch tutorials, etc. We share our makeup skills, knowhows, and recommendations in order to teach others to become more confident in themselves and with their makeup. We enjoy the positive feedback we receive when we get complimented for our makeup and makeup skills. Makeup creates diverse and inclusive communities that help, advise, and inspire.

Makeup is valuable

Makeup is a form of artistic expression. Makeup is art. There's a lot of makeup and a lot to do with it. Makeup helps us to be creative. It allows us to express our individuality. Makeup is fun to wear and fun to experiment with. Makeup is also inspiring and enjoyable. Makeup is therapeutic. Makeup is self-care to some. Makeup is pleasing to look at. Makeup is a creative outlet and allows us to de-stress.

Makeup gives autonomy

Makeup gives us the ability to look as we wish. We can use makeup to enhance or manipulate our appearance and even mood. We're in charge of our makeup and we can do as we please with it. We have the ability and control to shape the final look. With makeup we can change our self-image and how we are perceived. We wear makeup because it can improve our self-esteem. Makeup builds our confidence.

If you love makeup or loathe it, do as you please! Spend time doing things that bring you joy instead of worrying about how you're perceived by other people.

Do you wear makeup? If so, why do you wear it and do you think that we're fed too much content on makeup these days?

Curiosity is the best outfit. Thank you for reading.

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Tran, A., Rosales, R., & Copes, L. (2020). Paint a Better Mood? Effects of Makeup Use on YouTube Beauty Influencers’ Self-Esteem. SAGE Open, 10(2). https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244020933591

Benefits Of A Capsule Wardrobe

Seen or heard about capsule wardrobes but never bothered to look into them? Well, you should read this. It could change your life.

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE ESSENTIALS

A capsule wardrobe is a set number of clothing pieces that complement each other, are of good quality, durable, (typically) minimally designed, and intended to last (a long time). Many fashion bloggers, vloggers, stylists, influencers, the average consumer like ourselves, and a few independent fashion brands have focused their attention on sustainable fashion consumption, with interest in well-made, timeless clothing and accessories, as opposed to one-use, throwaway trend pieces, proving you can still be fashionable while consuming less.

It’s no secret that the fashion industry is among the top ten polluting industries. Fast fashion retailers churn out more (a lot more) items than what’s necessary, and consumers cop more items than what’s necessary. We have too much choice. And we’re encouraged to buy things. It’s not fair to put the blame on consumers; fast fashion might be the only option some people have.

Overproduction and overconsumption are ongoing problems associated mostly with fast fashion retailers such as SHE*N. When you really think about it... How is something like this actually acceptable? Well, we don’t really see or know what happens before our clothes reach our doorstep (e.g., where the materials came from, where the clothes were made, who made them and their working conditions, the whole journey it took to get to you, etc.) (see Stringer et al. 2020), nor what happens to them afterwards (e.g., shipped off to landfill in other countries). Retailers and businesses should be more transparent with their customers. Out of sight, out of mind. It’s that simple.

Not only that, it is suggested that materialism is related to lower levels of life satisfaction (Tsang et al., 2014).

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So, why should you give a capsule wardrobe a go then?

Bardey et al. (2021) have carried out some sweet research on the impact of a capsule wardrobe on consumers. 👏🏼

The researchers studied ten female participants’ (who had an interest in fashion) lived experiences with a three week capsule wardrobe. Participants were to wear items only from their capsule wardrobe that consisted of around 37 items; clothing, shoes, bags, and other accessories (not including underwear, sleepwear, or sportswear). Participants were interviewed before and after in order to understand their consumption habits, style, and their attitude towards sustainability.

The results showed that a capsule wardrobe had a positive impact on participants. It was found that participants:

• Were less stressed: Participants had no need to plan outfits because their clothes were all complementary, and they had less options to choose from. Also, participants shared that their outfits were decided on faster.

• Were detached from fashion trends: Social media (i.e., mainly Instagram, TikTok, and maybe even YouTube) plays a large role in how we think we should dress ourselves. A part of human nature, we follow what others are doing. We follow trends. Before adopting the capsule wardrobe, participants initially felt pressured to follow trends and fit in. Afterwards, they felt more free and less pressured by the latest fashion trends.

• Found joy in their own style: Participants were more interested in their own sense of style after the study than before. They shared that they paid more attention to how they styled their outfits (owned both before and after), including the use of makeup, leading them to explore the variety of outfits available to them.

• Enhanced their awareness of conscious consumption: The experience of adopting a capsule wardrobe gave participants a chance to reflect on their consumption behaviours and their impact on the environment. They acknowledged the amount of clothes they owned and would consider obtaining better quality items. They discussed that they saved money by not purchasing clothing. How many clothes do you purchase within a month?! Not only that, participants shared that they would pay more attention to the way they treated their clothes.

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Bardey, A., Booth, M., Heger, G., & Larsson, J. (2021). Finding yourself in your wardrobe: An exploratory study of lived experiences with a capsule wardrobe. International Journal of Market Research, 64(1), 113-131. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470785321993743

Stringer, T., Mortimer, G. & Payne, A. R. (2020). Do ethical concerns and personal values influence the purchase intention of fast-fashion clothing? Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 24(1), 99-120. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFMM-01-2019-0011

Tsang, J. A., Carpenter, T. P., Roberts, J. A., Frisch, M. B., & Carlisle R. D. (2014). Why are materialists less happy? The role of gratitude and need satisfaction in the relationship between materialism and life satisfaction. Personality and Individual Differences, 64, 62-66.

The Psychology Behind Lucky Girl Syndrome (And Manifestation)

What does lucky look like to you?

#LuckyGirlSyndrome has become the latest TikTok trend in 2023, but what is Lucky Girl Syndrome exactly? We'll take a look at what this is, how we can learn from it, and of course, the psychological perspective of it.

What is Lucky Girl Syndrome?

You've heard of manifestation right? Manifestation is the concept of turning your dreams and ideas into reality, by intention. You have to think about what you want, and you have to put in work for it to become true. We all 'manifest' to a degree, e.g., thinking of what we want to eat for dinner, and then cooking it (or ordering in). Some people apply this to actual goals such as buying a dream car, getting good grades, travelling, and even just being happy. It's all about mindset. Lucky Girl Syndrome is simply just manifestation. You have to be able to change your mindset, which in turn changes your behaviours and actions to those that can help you in the process of achieving your dreams and ideas.

A person who adopts the Lucky Girl mindset would say something along the lines of:

"I am capable of achieving what I want and more."

If you believe you can achieve whatever you want and you have an open-mind, you're going to believe that, and your actions will change accordingly such as taking opportunities, meeting new people, and instead of watching TV show reruns, learning a skill or hobby. The Lucky Girl mindset is where you believe that your possibilities are infinite. It's about opening up avenues to explore and even running into those you didn't know existed. Don't expect to see results if you stick to your current habits and routines. You are in charge of your beliefs and how you see things.

On the other hand, if you believe that you can't achieve, there's only one route to 'success', the world is a bad place, and everything takes a hell of a lot of effort to do, you're going to believe that. And so, your behaviours in reality will be a reflection of those thoughts and beliefs, which in turn will make you feel ultimately unsatisfied and upset. A mindset like this will only hold you back from your potential. It's as simple as that from a social media standpoint.

What is the psychology behind Lucky Girl Syndrome?

In terms of psychology, the manifestation we hear about on social media fits into the realm of 'pop' (popular) psychology, topics related to psychology that make it big in society originating from social media and well, the media itself. Manifestation is actually a pseudoscience; it's not backed up by evidence, but it's cool and fun to talk about on your coffee break. It's not good for psychology to be associated with such because a long term goal of psychology is to be taken seriously as a real science, with real research, involving real scientific methods...!

Don't even start about MBTI. However, there are many similar concepts closely related to manifestation, motivation, and attaining goals that psychologists have been using in therapy, educational settings, work settings, and other areas. Try and see how a few apply to Lucky Girl Syndrome, you'll be surprised.

Growth Mindset

The growth mindset is a theory in 'positive psychology' where if you believe that you can do something, you're more likely to do that something successfully regardless of talent, intelligence, or education - You just need to put in the work. Dweck (2006) termed it, the psychology of success. Having a growth mindset means that your skills and abilities have the opportunity to develop rather than staying fixed and unchangeable. This mindset can make you resilient to setbacks because you believe that you always have opportunities to learn and experience. How to use the growth mindset? The key is to take fixed mindset beliefs and associate them with growth and learning instead. If you catch yourself saying something along the lines of "I'm not seeing results!", add 'yet' to the end of that statement.

Self-fulfilling Prophecy

The term self-fulfilling prophecy is simply when a person's expectations or beliefs about an event influences their behaviour to match that of the expectations or beliefs. To put it simply, if you think you're unlovable, you're going to act unlovable and push everyone away. If you believe that you're never going to get your dream job, you're not going to put effort into getting it or take appropriate actions to get it, making it more likely that you'll not get that job. This is similar to confirmation bias.

Self-determination Theory

Self-determination theory is a framework to understand internal factors that motivate us and shape how we behave (Ryan & Deci, 2017). We have three basic psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and connectedness. When they're met, they lead to greater motivation and life satisfaction. Autonomy is when we control our own behaviour and actions. Competence refers to growing and learning new skills that are important to us. Connectedness refers to interacting with others.

Locus of Control

Locus of control is an individual difference concerning how we understand and perceive events and circumstances. This can be internal (i.e., what happens to me is determined by my own behaviours and actions) and external (i.e., what happens to me is determined by other people, society, chance, the 'universe', and maybe even spiritual forces). Our lives are determined by both internal and external factors, and it's important to keep in mind that what might apply to you, might not apply to someone else. (Read more: Stressed out about work? Learn how to deal with it).

An internal locus of control is associated with more positive outcomes according to many studies (Iles-Caven et al., 2020). When we believe that fate will determine what happens to us, we don't take the initiative to work towards our goals nor feel connected to what we want, nor what we are doing. It's like expecting someone else to do the work for you.

Where is research heading in terms of manifestation itself?

Surprisingly, there has been research on the psychology of belief in manifestation (i.e., Dixon et al., 2022). The researchers explored the psychology of those who believe in manifestation in three studies. They developed a 'Manifestation Scale', and participants who scored higher on it perceived themselves as more successful and believed they were more likely to achieve success in the future as well. They were more likely to be drawn to risk, experience debt, and believe that an unlikely level of success could be achieved pretty fast. Research is never 100 per cent reliable and/or valid, and we should never walk away accepting conclusions for what they are. It's important to take such research and evaluate it. Firstly, manifestation is hard to define, the scale is new, and the small sample size (N = 1023) is ethnocentric (USA-focused). However, it's a good basis for further research on this topic.

How can I get the Lucky Girl Syndrome mindset?

Remember, if you have goals that you want to achieve, you have to put the effort in yourself. Here are some things to keep in mind to achieve your goals based on the original idea of Lucky Girl Syndrome and the evidence-based concepts and theories in psychology as discussed previously.

• You're going to know what exactly it is that you want to bring into your life and write it down somewhere. This could be on your phone, a piece of paper, or in a journal. Write about whatever you want no matter how big or small, write however many goals you want as long as they do no harm, make you happy, make you feel in control, and feels right to you. You have to be able to know exactly what you want so that you know you achieved exactly that.

• You're going to make these goals clearer for yourself - Understand what it is exactly that you want, when you want it, and if you have a plan. It's alright to say you want the latest designer items, but what does that really mean to you? A handbag? Sunglasses? What brand? What colour? Why do you want it in the first place? How much do you need to save up?

• You're going to accept opportunities, don't just 'be open' to accepting them. Put yourself out there, learn new skills that you find fun and engaging.

• You're going to apply to opportunities whether you're suited towards them or not, what's the worst that could happen? If you don't succeed move on and you might find an even better opportunity afterwards. Put it this way, let's say if you want to get your dream internship - If you submit your application, you have a higher chance of succeeding compared to not doing an application at all, right? If you actually buy a lottery ticket, you have a higher chance of winning the lottery than someone who hasn't got a ticket, right? It's that simple.

• You're going to be realistic, but this doesn't mean you need to engage in negative self-talk. Although Lucky Girl Syndrome is based on reducing self-limiting beliefs, you don't have to treat them as 'self-limiting beliefs'. Instead, incorporate them into your goal setting - think about how you can overcome them. Do your research on how to achieve specific goals - See how others have achieved it and apply this to your goal setting. Learn the skills required. If you're way too optimistic, you're going to eventually lose momentum.

• You're going to remember that there is no one way to achieving your goals, you might find an alternative along the way, or something you enjoy more.

• You're going to persevere and test your patience - We're used to instant gratification, and unfortunately goals aren't achieved overnight. Keep believing and you'll find ways to get to where you want.

• You're going to follow people and accounts that inspire you, motivate you, match your beliefs, and make you want to be a better version of yourself.

• You're not going to be envious of others or want to be a particular person. You are you.

• You're going to be grateful and be happy with what you have already. Doing this will keep in a positive frame of mind and motivated to achieve more.

• You're going to create a vision board. Visualisation is powerful and has been shown to be effective in sports (Predoiu et al., 2020). Creating a vision board is a fun and simple way to keep your goals in mind and keep you happily motivated. Take a look online at images (or your own) that resemble your goals and then just put them all together. You can make a physical vision board by sticking pictures to a board or you can make a digital one using PowerPoint or Word. If that's not your thing, just create a new photos folder on your phone and keep the pictures there so they are in one place.

• As an example, if you don't know where to start, if you want to be happy let's say, you could find a picture of a smiley face. Want to go to cafés more this year? Include a picture of a café and imagine yourself being in that picture. The trick here is to look back at this board every now and again to remind yourself of your dreams and to also see what you've achieved so far. Keep it in mind, but don't feel the need to have to look at it everyday.

• You're not going to be constantly attached to your goals - Check them once in a while.

What are the drawbacks of having the Lucky Girl Syndrome mindset?

One thing to remember is that just writing down a goal and not doing anything about it won't make it come true, unless you put in the work. Although Lucky Girl Syndrome is about believing you can achieve every single thing and reducing self-limiting beliefs, you need to be realistic, and you will think about the pros and cons of getting there. We evaluate decisions we make to keep us safe. Also, it's inevitable that you'll become disheartened if you can't reach your goals or they don't seem like they're getting closer, and that's OK, it will help you in future planning.

It can be very easy to get carried away with the manifestation you learn via social media if you are going through a tough period in your life or if you have a mental health disorder. If you find yourself becoming too interested or pre-occupied with trying to fulfil your goals - it's wise to step away. It shouldn't interfere with your daily life nor make it miserable.

Manifestation is a journey and not a quick fix for your problems.

Not every single thing that happens to you is a product of manifestation or can be manifested, good or bad.

Keep your goals to yourself or with your closest friends and family, because this way, you'll have no one to talk you out of your goals and dreams, and make you feel incapable of achieving them. We have quite a lot of potential to achieve anything we want, but we're usually told we can't or not to bother trying.

Don't take what you see on social media seriously. The 'Lucky Girl Syndrome' that you learn about on social media has its own flaws (e.g., Do bad things happen to me because I thought of them? Why do some people of certain backgrounds achieve greater results? Etc.).

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Having goals is a wonderful thing; it keeps us curious, motivated, and it gives us something to do. In order to achieve our goals, fulfil our wants and needs, and turn our ideas into reality, we need to be able to take control of our own actions and change our mindset from believing that dreaming is enough, to actually doing with belief in ourselves that we can do whatever we want when we put our mind towards it. Curiosity is the best outfit. Work it.

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Dixon, L. J., Hornsey, M., Hartley, N. (2022). The secret to success? The psychology of belief in manifestation. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.18696.90881

Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House.

Iles-Caven, Y., Gregory, S., Ellis, G., Golding, J., & Nowicki, S. (2020). The Relationship Between Locus of Control and Religious Behavior and Beliefs in a Large Population of Parents: An Observational Study. Frontiers in psychology, 11, 1462. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01462

Predoiu, R., Predoiu, A., Mitrache, G.,... et al. (2020). Visualisation techniques in sport–the mental road map for success. Physical Education, Sport and Kinetotherapy Journal, 59(3), 245-256.

Ryan, R. M. & Deci, E. L. (2017). Self-determination theory: Basic psychological needs in motivation, development, and wellness. The Guilford Press. https://doi.org/10.1521/978.14625/28806

Worth, P. & Smith, M. D. (2019). Positive Psychology And Luck Experiences in The Routledge Handbook of the Philosophy and Psychology of Luck (1st Ed.). Routledge.

How To Get A First Class Psychology Degree

SPSS?

I don’t know her.

It’s been five months since my friend Ash graduated from her Bachelors in Psychology (with Education). I met up with her at her local café in Manchester to ask how she gained a first. Yes, she is residing in Manchester now after expressing her hunger for a change in scenery, one that is less “bos-lin” (bustling) she giggles.

As we have a chat about our lack of knowledge on the FA Cup (a bar across from us was airing a match between Chelsea and Liverpool), two large iced lattes are placed on our table. The café serves American-inspired cuisine—and the sun is directly in my face—we move to a table at the back—the weather is surprisingly nice for an evening in mid May.

JH: I wanted to start off and ask—what are you wearing since this is a fashion magazine?

AS: Oh right. I’m wearing my Veja V-12 Marsala Nautico Leather shoes gifted to me by my sister. An En Route necklace and ring. And a Levi’s denim jumpsuit.

JH: I just wanted to say well done, it must feel great to finally finish your degree after the past few hectic years. What are you up to now?

AS: Thank you! I know right, uni was all over the place last year but it’s all done now, thankfully. I’m working in a primary school at the moment and I love it. You’re not going to get your dream job straight away after you graduate, so don’t fret about it.

JH: How did lockdown affect you?

AS: It was pretty tough adjusting to online study. But not having to travel to uni was refreshing because it gave me time to do other things. I was kind of sad at first but then I got used to a different lifestyle. I don’t think working from home is a bad idea at all and it’s made me appreciate just being in the moment.

JH: What would you say to students studying from home?

AS: I would say that studying from home and being physically at uni are not entirely different. Since psychology is mostly independent study you can be by yourself writing essays and reading most of the time. If you’re only online at the moment and you live on your laptop, it would be a good idea to get a laptop stand and a separate keyboard and mouse to reduce strain on your eyes, wrists, and neck. My laptop stand actually helped me so much—it really encouraged me to be at my laptop. It’s also super important to get up and move every 30 minutes. Another thing is, make sure that your software is updated whether it be Teams, Zoom, or SPSS. If you have any questions or you don’t get something, it’s really important that you let your lecturer, tutor, or uni know because leaving it last minute can make you feel lost and helpless.

If you have any questions or you don’t get something, it’s really important that you let your lecturer, tutor, or uni know because leaving it last minute can make you feel lost and helpless.

JH: What would you say is most important for a student?

AS: Out of all? Sleep. Yes, sleep is so important. If you’re sleep deprived you’re not going to concentrate well on anything. You’re going to be grumpy, you’re going to snap when you don’t mean to. I know that it may not be easy for some people to sleep, but just getting a few good hours in can really improve your quality of life.

JH: And how can a student get some good sleep?

AS: As mean as it sounds, if you live in halls, you have to tell your roommates to shut up (politely) if they’re being inconsiderate. First year was eye-opening for me as I got a taste of living with people that weren’t my family. I had to wear earplugs because the halls next door to me would play loud music until 4AM every other night and my roommates would have an endless Riverdale marathon every Monday night which included lots of sighing... and pining.

JH: Speaking of Riverdale marathons, is procrastination something that you had to deal with?

AS: All the time. If I didn’t procrastinate I would have achieved much more by now. I do regret procrastinating but I still procrastinate today. For me, I think I’ve always been like this. I’d leave my homework until the last minute. I’d walk to secondary school scribbling away in my notebook. I would say go on and procrastinate as much as you'd like. You know you’ll feel bad, but you’ll do it anyway. If I tell you to not procrastinate, what are you going to do? Just do whatever gets you through, but just know that your work isn’t going to write itself.

JH: Hard truth. I wasn’t expecting you to advise procrastination.

AS: I’m really passionate about routines—I don’t mean getting up at 6AM on the dot and making yourself a green juice. What I mean is that you shouldn’t be studying, working, or doing something university related 24/7. Make some time for yourself. You don’t need to follow routines that are currently trending on TikTok—just do what’s right for you.

You can’t always be work, work, work all up in your head. It’s going to take a toll on you at some point. This goes for your future career as well. Find something that takes you away for a bit such as a good game, exercise, going for walks, cooking, reading, whatever you like. Consistent and steady progress is what worked for me—I would set aside a couple of hours a day just to focus on assignments and prep work for seminars.

JH: I totally agree. Where did you spend the most time at uni?

AS: Honestly, it’s turning into a blur. I remember being in my room a lot. Or I would be on the bus. I also remember being in open spaces seated around uni—on my laptop—before lockdown. I’d pick a nice spot by a window to sit and enjoy the view whilst typing away. I was alone most of the time—everyone had their own thing going on. I rarely visited the library—maybe just to print something occasionally. One thing I would say is to have a good place to study, one where you can concentrate, especially when you have limited time. This should not be your bed, sit at a real desk, otherwise you’ll want to get under the covers, rest your head on the nice fluffy pillow, take your phone off the bedside table... start scrolling through Instagram... eyelids are getting heavy. You see where I’m going with this.

Sit at a real desk, otherwise you’ll want to get under the covers, rest your head on the nice fluffy pillow, take your phone off the bedside table... Start scrolling through Instagram... Eyelids are getting heavy. You see where I’m going with this.

JH: You don’t mention spending time at lectures?!

AS: I didn’t realise! I actually didn’t spend much time in in-person lectures because we didn’t have many and they were short. But they were super helpful to meet your lecturers and other people in your class. When the whole lockdown fiasco happened, no one really contributed to lessons, you’d just be looking at a screen of mini people icons. I had lots of prep work and reading though which covered mostly everything in the syllabus. This is what I meant when I was alone most of the time.

JH: You missed out on a lot. You mention that it was super helpful to be physically in a lecture. Could you share a little more on that?

AS: Lectures are important no matter how you attend it, online or offline. If you don’t attend any of your lectures at all—you’re not getting what you paid for and you’re not learning. It’s as simple as that. Somehow when you attend your classes a bit of knowledge manages to absorb in your brain whether you’re paying attention or not. Attending your classes gives you a chance to meet your peers who you might study with, do presentations and group work with, etc. They’re most likely in the same boat as you—make a group chat with them or at least make a little effort to get to know them.

If you really struggle and get bored with your lectures, take modules that you’re interested in, otherwise you’ll sit in your 9AM class one day and think to yourself, “Why did I take this module? I could be sleeping in right now...”. You can also ask your tutors questions and some may even hint what exactly they’re looking for in your work. If you’re worried about looking like you have no friends, at the end of the day, you’re there for you. Got a question, ask it. If you have recorded lectures and you’re playing them on 2x speed it’s totally acceptable and works wonders. If it’s up then it’s stuck? In the context of memory that is…

JH: I see, you’re paying to be there so you might as well use it to your full advantage. How did you manage your expenses?

AS: I applied for a student loan and used that for uni expenses only. I had a part-time job so I used that to cover food and clothes. I’m not that much of a big spender. When you’re studying psychology, in the words of most of my lecturers, you shouldn’t be buying or really using books (maybe only for definitions). You should be using peer-reviewed journal articles to show your understanding of up to date research. Your university should have an online database with access to psychology/science journal libraries (such as Frontiers, SAGE, JSTOR, Taylor & Francis, and ScienceDirect, just to name a few). Any search engine is your friend though—PDF files can readily be found online (antivirus software advised).

When searching for a journal article it’s all about the use of relevant keywords. For instance, let’s say you want to write an essay on fruit preference and the personality of young adults (because that’s all I can think of at the moment), you would type into the search bar: fruit personality psychology journal article or even fruit big five journal article. You can use filters to screen out languages and years (2013-2022 and unpublished articles hit the sweet spot).

Any search engine is your friend though—PDF files can readily be found online (antivirus software is advised).

JH: It’s one thing to know how to search for journal articles, but another to know how to read them. How many articles have you say... read through over your three year course?

AS: A psychology degree involves lots of reading. I would say that I downloaded around 20-30 articles for each essay then checked if I had full access to them, they were recent, and that they were peer-reviewed. Once I made these checks—I would be left with 15-20 articles that I could use for definitions, comparing research, and to search for further references. It’s also enough to show your marker that you’ve done some reading—which means you’ve put in some effort.

Because it’s so much reading, it’s important that you know the basic layout of a published Psychology journal article; it usually comprises of an abstract, introduction, methodology, results, discussion, conclusion, and references. Never copy articles word for word because it will flag up on your university’s plagiarism detection software. Plagiarism is bad and a big no-no. A helpful tip to search through articles is to use the find shortcut on your keyboard “ctrl/cmd-f”. Organisation is also important here, you can create a new folder for each module and assignment—and then stick your articles in them.

JH: Psychology uses the APA layout, so it’s super important that you know the right version to use.

AS: Yes, it is super important that you use the correct version of the APA format because there are a lot of differences between each version. APA format is the layout that psychology students and researchers use for their research papers in the UK, this includes the reference layout. APA 7 is probably what you should be using now. I used 6 because when I started uni 7 wasn’t really used yet. You should save a template of the APA 7 format so that you can refer to it.

This includes references, citations, headings, font, font size, where your page numbers should be, tense, headers, footers, quotes, things like that. Saving a template will save you from having to type in the same thing over and over. Correct layout, grammar, and spelling accounted for 10 per cent of my final grade so it makes a huge difference. The content of your work can be a little crap, but at least it’s spelled correctly. Speaking of what contributes towards your grade, you have to know how your modules are graded and what grade you’re at (so you know how many marks you should be aiming for). Know what your assignment, coursework, etc. is asking from you—this should be outlined on your module guide. This is what your lecturer is going to mark you on.

Correct layout, grammar, and spelling accounted for 10 per cent of my final grade so it makes a huge difference. The content of your work can be a little crap, but at least it’s spelled correctly.

JH: Any tips on finalising a piece of coursework?

AS: I would say make sure that you’ve read through your work twice fully a few days before it’s due. It’s really easy to misspell something or type words twice. Tweak your Word settings to detect incorrect grammar. I’ve seen lots of students get caught out because they didn’t know how to upload their work correctly.

I used Turnitin, it’s one of those websites where multiple lecturers (admins) dip in and out and change things around. Make sure you’re enrolled to the module you’re doing, you know when your assignment is due, and if you’re allowed to resubmit preferably 24 hours before your assignment is due (not 24 minutes). This is in case you want to change something. Time is one of your greatest tools.

JH: Have you ever gotten a grade you didn’t like? What came out of it?

AS: Yes, a couple of times. We had a reflection piece of coursework we had to do every year and my grade never improved. I let it go though. I used the feedback and all but it didn’t improve my work. Feedback is given for a reason, so it’s wise to use it. You’re not going to be happy with your grades all the time—and it’s not always your fault. If you’re really not happy with a grade, it’s probably best to ask your lecturer to go through your work with you—book a meeting with them. Emails can get you places, and sometimes not. It used to happen quite a lot where you would ask a lecturer two questions and they would end up not answering your questions at all! The lecturers at my university used to get anno—can I say that?

JH: Yes, that’s great, go on.

AS: Yeah, they used to get annoyed when students would send them an email stating something like, “hi nic, what do you mean by asdgdsrgsrsrgwhdt. thanks. g.” No name, an inappropriate email address, no class name, no context. But when you send a nice and clear email, you may get the reply you’re asking for, and your lecturers will also get to know you as a student. Keep it to the point. Writing emails is a great skill to have. Don’t get stressed about writing emails though, lecturers get a lot of emails daily and genuinely don’t look deep into what you wrote. If your email is urgent, don’t forget to send it as high importance.

JH: How often did you ask for help from other students and your tutors?

AS: Quite a lot really. Just be careful not to share your work with others too much otherwise you’ll end up writing the same thing! There’s no shame at all in asking for help, we’re all different with different abilities and skillsets. There used to be a poster in the university that said something like, “Ask a question and you’re a fool for five minutes, don’t ask and you’re a fool for life”. Also, don’t be afraid to use your university’s services. You matter.

Sometimes you may need some help whether it be for career advice, counselling and wellbeing, general concerns, or academic assistance. Your library has many resources to offer such as books, articles, and quiet places to study when you want to be on your own. If you really can’t find an article from your own university’s database, you can ask your librarian for help. You can also join societies where you can meet other people that share your interests. You should’ve been assigned a personal tutor—they’re meant to be there to help you with your progress at university.

There’s no shame at all in asking for help, we’re all different with different abilities and skillsets.

JH: Did you have any group assignments and how did it go for you?

AS: Honestly, I dreaded group assignments. I had one proper group presentation in first year but it didn’t count towards my classification. It was a bit of a shambles because no one was answering their texts and we weren’t prepared to present on the day. I’m quite go all in or nothing so I was bummed after we presented, but it was an alright grade in the end. There’s always going to be someone in the group that does more and one that does less. That’s just how it is. You might have to pick up the slack for others, but don’t get taken advantage of, because you’ll get burned out.

JH: You talk about uploading assignments and presentations - Did you ever have any written exams in a hall?

AS: If you have a timed written exam, I’m sorry to hear that. I loathed exams, I never saw the point in them. You can have all of the expertise in a subject area but completely lose yourself on the day and forget everything. One way I used to prepare for exams is literally to write them out and memorise them. This is good if you know the questions beforehand. I knew what I was going to write and how long it took. Draft your exam on your word processor of choice, make sure it’s good enough for your liking, then make sure it can be written in a set amount of time. Then number the each line. Your job is to then memorise the exam line by line. You shouldn’t really be asked for references—that’s mean. Oh, and remember how to read an analog clock.

JH: Did you study psychology before your degree?

AS: Yes I did, it was a big help, but psychology is quite a wide subject so you’re never going to fully experience psychology for what it is. You just need to know the basics and how to be critical. One thing my psychology teacher taught us in sixth form is the acronym GRAVE. It’s used for critiquing articles and it stands for generalisability, reliability, applicability, validity, and ethics. If you’re new to psychology it’s pretty simple to use. Generalisability - Is this research generalisable in terms of its methodology and/or its findings, or is it only applicable to one or few populations? Reliability - Is the method used reliable? Are the findings similar to other studies? Are any measures used measuring what is intended to be measured? How well is the study replicated? Applicability - Has the research findings been implemented in the ‘real world’? (Education, healthcare, policies, etc.). Validity - Here we’re talking control measures, extraneous variables, order effects, demand characteristics; things that could have an effect on the DV. Ethics - Think about confidentiality, deception, (informed) consent, debrief, withdrawal, and protection. Ethics is super important when it comes to designing studies - you will have to prove your understanding of ethics when planning your own dissertation.

JH: What would you advise students who have never done psychology in their life?

AS: Don’t be afraid of SPSS—a statistics software that you will definitely use more than a couple of times in research methods. To tell you the truth, I love SPSS but that’s because I’m done with it. The software is pretty minimal but using it for the first time can be a little daunting. The best thing to do is to make everything as simple as possible. Make little guides that you can refer to. Take each type of data - name it - give an example (e.g., nominal data = Flavours of ice cream). Take each research design - name it - give an example - write the procedure. Take each statistical test - name it - give an example - write the procedure. See where I’m headed? Some really handy books (PDF files of earlier versions can be found online) are: Dancey and Reidy - Statistics Without Maths for Psychology, and Howitt and Cramer - Research Methods in Psychology. YouTube has many useful tutorials as well. When it comes to planning your dissertation keep in mind whether you’re more comfortable doing qualitative or quantitative research.

The best thing to do is to make everything as simple as possible.

JH: Summer is here.

AS: Yes.

JH: What should a psychology student do during summer?

AS: It would be a good idea for you to gain some experience—in anything you want to do. You can do this by applying for internships or volunteering. Even a few hours can make a big difference to your CV. Just make sure that you apply early. It’s easier said than done though, it can be competitive and that sucks considering all the things going on at the moment. Ask your university’s career service for advice and if there are any companies in your area that offer internships.

JH: Takeaway messages to sum up the uni experience?

AS: Do your best. Just do your best, that’s all. It’s your degree at the end of the day. If you know that you did your best then you can’t kick yourself in the bum after... And sometimes you just need realise things. If you have to deactivate your socials, do it. If you have to put your hand on the window of the bus, and gaze longingly at passing cars as you listen to ballads through your airpods, fine. Time at university goes by quickly and spending 10ish hours of your time on a piece of work you’ll never have to do again is pretty great if you ask me... Can I add one more?

It’s your degree at the end of the day. If you know that you did your best then you can’t kick yourself in the bum after...

JH: Go ahead.

AS: Save your work in at least two places whether it be a USB, your email, your laptop, or an external hard drive. My sister lost her work once. You never know when you can lose your work—and it can be really disheartening if it happens. Good luck everyone!

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IF YOU’RE FEELING OVERWHELMED OR WOULD LIKE SOME ADVICE, SPEAK TO YOUR UNIVERSITY’S WELLBEING SERVICE, THEY’RE THERE FOR YOU.