http://www.forbes.com/sites/learnvest/2 ... out-you/2/Enclothed cognition gives scientific proof to the idea that you should dress not how you feel, but how you want to feel. Which clothes make you feel powerful? Sexy? In control? Wealthy? The clothes you choose are sending a message to those around you, but also to you, yourself.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/ar ... 3112000200We introduce the term “enclothed cognition” to describe the systematic influence that clothes have on the wearer's psychological processes. We offer a potentially unifying framework to integrate past findings and capture the diverse impact that clothes can have on the wearer by proposing that enclothed cognition involves the co-occurrence of two independent factors—the symbolic meaning of the clothes and the physical experience of wearing them. As a first test of our enclothed cognition perspective, the current research explored the effects of wearing a lab coat. A pretest found that a lab coat is generally associated with attentiveness and carefulness. We therefore predicted that wearing a lab coat would increase performance on attention-related tasks. In Experiment 1, physically wearing a lab coat increased selective attention compared to not wearing a lab coat. In Experiments 2 and 3, wearing a lab coat described as a doctor's coat increased sustained attention compared to wearing a lab coat described as a painter's coat, and compared to simply seeing or even identifying with a lab coat described as a doctor's coat. Thus, the current research suggests a basic principle of enclothed cognition—it depends on both the symbolic meaning and the physical experience of wearing the clothes.
http://www.historytoday.com/ulinka-rubl ... r-dressingWhen, how and why did looks become deeply embedded in how people felt about themselves and others? The Renaissance was a turning point. I use the term in its widest sense to describe a long period, from c.1300 to 1600. After 1300 a much greater variety and quantity of goods was produced and consumed across the globe. Textiles, furnishings and items of apparel formed a key part of this unprecedented diffusion of objects and increased interaction with overseas worlds. Tailoring was transformed by new materials and innovative techniques in cutting and sewing, as well as the desire for a tighter fit to emphasise bodily form, particularly of men’s clothing. Merchants expanded markets in courts and cities by making chic accessories such as hats, bags, gloves or hairpieces, ranging from beards to long braids. At the same time, new media and the spread of mirrors led to more people becoming interested in their self-image and into trying to imagine how they appeared to others; artists were depicting humans on an unprecedented scale, in the form of medals, portraits, woodcuts and genre scenes, and print circulated more information about dress across the world, as the genre of ‘costume books’ was born.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/learnvest/2 ... about-you/Americans rely on clothing as an economic and social indicator because there aren’t official marks of rank such as a caste system or aristocracy, says Dr. Baumgartner.
“When you don’t have a specific system, people come up with their own,” she explains. It’s what “helps you figure out where you fit in. Especially now, with the economy, with people losing status, maintaining a sense of who we are becomes even more important. Our clothes help place us where we think we want to be. ”
She cites the Real Housewives TV series as an example: “
Look at the way they focus on money. When they fight, they use logos and designers as a way to put each other down. They’re using clothes and accessories both as a tool to know where they fit in and as a weapon against others.”
Clothing
is a weapon and wearing
nothing
is equalizing
or dehumanizing
depending
on thy situation.
Thy situation
in thy fiction
started with thy ideal naked equality
until thy necessity of thy hierarchy
to have thy functioning hip
Generation Ship
forced thy social stratification
after many generations.
I do admit thy Science Fiction
is quite extreme but my fiction
hath thy basis in facts
that in fact
we use Clothes
as weapons
and as weapons
Clothes
are effective ways
to say
we are superior
to thy naked savages that
hath
been considered inferior
on whom we impose
our supposed
cultural superiority.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NaturismInternational Naturist Federation (Agde, France, 1974), naturism is:
a lifestyle in harmony with nature, expressed through social nudity, and characterised by self-respect of people with different opinions and of the environment.[1][2][3]
...
Many contemporary naturists and naturist organisations feel that the practice of social nudity should be asexual. For various social, cultural, and historical reasons the lay public, the media, and many contemporary naturists and their organisations often oversimplify the relationship between naturism and sexuality. Current research has begun to explore this complex relationship.[4]
..
"Each country has its own kind of naturism, and even each club has its own special character, for we too, human beings, have each our own character which is reflected in our surroundings."[1][5]
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ile_du_Levant
The Bain de Diane and the Plage des Grottes (a nude beach) are reserved for naturists; nudity is formally obligatory there. Being nude is allowed (and expected) everywhere on the public area of the island, except in the immediate vicinity of the harbour and on the village square.[1] On these locations, it is formally necessary to wear what the French jokingly call "le minimum",[2] often a pareo or a string. In conformance with the relaxed atmosphere of the island, this rule is not really enforced, but generally well observed. In restaurants outside the village centre, some clothing is usually worn but toplessness (for women and men) is quite accepted there and "le minimum" considered sufficient attire. At least one restaurant, La Fourmi, actively encourages nude use.
The island sees a number of scuba divers; these generally do not partake in the nudist lifestyle.