A GIRL, forced to marry her father after he sees her playing in his dead wife???s wedding gown, runs away wearing five dresses. Four dresses are of silk and they are beautiful. The last dress is of wood. It is in this dress that the girl escapes, throwing herself into the river to float away. A prince saves the girl but treats her badly, for she wears an ugly wood frock. Her suffering is eased at night when the girl takes off the wood dress and dances in her silk ones. The prince discovers the girl in the silk dresses and falls in love. They live happily ever after. This thesis is based on a fairy tale in which a girl???s life is changed by what she wears. In Fair Maiden Wood clothing is a means to identity. Costume is what identifies this girl as her father???s new bride, and it reveals to the shallow prince who his true love is. It is through clothing that we identify the fairy tale. But more significantly, it is through clothing that the girl experiences the outside world. The girl lives through her wood frock ??? it is the vessel by which she escapes the threat of incest, it is the prison that disguises her beauty from the prince; it is her armor, her cage, her temporary home. The wood frock becomes the girl???s first architecture, protecting and sheltering the girl in the most intimate manner, controlling her most immediate environment. But its role is not limited to enclosure; the wood dress also changes the girl???s experience of her surroundings, extending her bodily influence while also constraining it. The wood dress dictates how the girl moves, how much space she needs, how others see her, and how they treat her. It is an environment, elusively defined by the dialogue between her moving body and the surface of the wood shell surrounding her, which changes the girl???s quality of existence. In this in-between silhouette is a most potent, and poetic, form of architecture. In my thesis I continue the story of the girl in the wood frock through the design of three of her five gowns. The gowns reference the work of designers such as Cristobal Balenciaga or Issey Miyake whose clothes, by virtue of their construction and materiality, affect wearer and observer in startling and profound fashion. Their garments show a symbiotic relationship between body and shell, where the shell is not simply a passive enclosure but a responsive and independent extension of the body. My dresses are made with this symbiosis in mind, and I use their (painstaking) construction in order to propose that in clothing is the potential to create spatial environments that change fundamental perceptions by filtering and extending the wearer???s experience of the world and her effect on it. These dresses and the spaces they create are unique. They are not costumes of the everyday, used to suppress sensation in order to function; instead they are of the special day, when the girl seeks to be stimulated, enlightened, and also saved. They are dresses of heightened awareness, integrating both sense and action within their shifting boundaries, shaping a dynamic, albeit fleeting, architecture.

Previous research has shown that separately and in some combinations internal and external variables (e.g., fashion consciousness, the weather), in addition to the demographic variables of the individual (e.g., gender, age), can affect dress choice. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between the variables within the Choice of Professional Dress system and businesswomen's choice of professional dress along the classic–innovative fashion continuum (e.g., whether the professional dress is considered by the dress adopter as more classic or more innovative). A model was developed for this study to illustrate the relationships between multiple variables that are proposed to influence an individual's choice of professional dress. A survey questionnaire was created to investigate businesswomen's choice of professional dress along the classic–innovative fashion continuum in regards to variables within two of the internal subsystems, the demographic subsystem, and the two external subsystems of the Choice of Professional Dress system. Data was collected via an online survey managed by a marketing research company. Participants were predominately married, Caucasian, businesswomen between 30 and 40 years old who held primarily occupations such as office and administrative support or management and financial operations. Multiple regression analyses and ANOVA were employed to test the relationships between the Choice of Professional Dress variables and businesswomen's selection of professional dress for work, as proposed in five main hypotheses. Results of the multiple regression analysis and ANOVA indicated significant relationships between businesswomen's choice of professional dress along the classic–innovative fashion continuum and demographics (i.e., age, education), as well as internal variables (i.e., fashion consciousness, professional image/role, comfort, appearance labor, availability of professional dress) and external variables (i.e., company culture, company dress policies, profession). These results contribute to academia by providing a deeper and richer understanding of businesswomen's professional dress choice as well as the placement of these choices by businesswomen on the <i>Fashion Continuum</i>. Based on the findings, academic and practical suggestions as well as recommendations for future research were provided. / Ph. D.

This study focuses on the relationship between body image and the Muslim religious dress code of South African Indian Muslim female adolescents. During the literature search conducted by the researcher no research specifically on body image of female adolescents when wearing the Muslim dress code in South Africa could be found. South African Indian Muslim adolescents are faced with challenges in a changing environment. In the aftermath of 9/11 South African Indian Muslim adolescent females are undergoing changes on how they view the Muslim religious dress code and the impact it has on their body image. A new Muslim identity depicted by the Muslim religious dress code is adopted. The goal of this study was to determine how the Muslim adolescent female views the relationship between her body image and wearing the Muslim religious dress code. A phenomenological Gestalt, field theory approach was followed within a qualitative case study design. Furthermore, The Social Identity Theory served as additional theoretical framework. Analysis was done using Creswell’s application of Tesch’s Method. The participants for this study consisted of a sample size of six South African Indian Muslim female adolescents between the ages of 14 and 16. Of note, all the female participants attended the same school in Johannesburg and all participants wore the Muslim religious dress code to school. The qualitative data were collected in the form of unstructured in-depth interviews and projection-type photos with the participants. The researcher’s objective was to understand and interpret the meanings the participants gave to their perceptions and experiences, which was further supported through participant observation, self-reflective notes and field and observational notes. The interviews were recorded on tape and DVD. Recordings were transcribed verbatim, analysis of contents and the data was then coded into categories from which themes and sub-themes emerged. Central themes and patterns of the experiences were interpreted and analysed within the context of the study. The researcher ensured that data was gathered from different data sources as described and data was considered from multiple dimensions to ensure triangulation. The findings of the study revealed that the Indian Muslim female adolescent was able to negotiate the wearing of the Muslim religious dress code with confidence and this resulted in a positive body image. / MA (Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

This study focuses on the relationship between body image and the Muslim religious dress code of South African Indian Muslim female adolescents. During the literature search conducted by the researcher no research specifically on body image of female adolescents when wearing the Muslim dress code in South Africa could be found. South African Indian Muslim adolescents are faced with challenges in a changing environment. In the aftermath of 9/11 South African Indian Muslim adolescent females are undergoing changes on how they view the Muslim religious dress code and the impact it has on their body image. A new Muslim identity depicted by the Muslim religious dress code is adopted. The goal of this study was to determine how the Muslim adolescent female views the relationship between her body image and wearing the Muslim religious dress code. A phenomenological Gestalt, field theory approach was followed within a qualitative case study design. Furthermore, The Social Identity Theory served as additional theoretical framework. Analysis was done using Creswell’s application of Tesch’s Method. The participants for this study consisted of a sample size of six South African Indian Muslim female adolescents between the ages of 14 and 16. Of note, all the female participants attended the same school in Johannesburg and all participants wore the Muslim religious dress code to school. The qualitative data were collected in the form of unstructured in-depth interviews and projection-type photos with the participants. The researcher’s objective was to understand and interpret the meanings the participants gave to their perceptions and experiences, which was further supported through participant observation, self-reflective notes and field and observational notes. The interviews were recorded on tape and DVD. Recordings were transcribed verbatim, analysis of contents and the data was then coded into categories from which themes and sub-themes emerged. Central themes and patterns of the experiences were interpreted and analysed within the context of the study. The researcher ensured that data was gathered from different data sources as described and data was considered from multiple dimensions to ensure triangulation. The findings of the study revealed that the Indian Muslim female adolescent was able to negotiate the wearing of the Muslim religious dress code with confidence and this resulted in a positive body image. / MA (Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

published_or_final_version / Literary and Cultural Studies / Master / Master of Arts

published_or_final_version / Sociology / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

魏、晉間任誕之風流行，然而儒家之禮，非但未在此思潮下衰弱，反而藉由士人熱烈 之議論，益見發展．針對此一思想特色，故筆者乃思從史料、典籍著手，從社會、政 治、文化之角度作一通盤檢討，以明於魏、晉政局紛亂、社會失序之際，禮所顯現之 意義及其在人類群體綱紀中之適切性． 本篇論文共分六章研討如下： 第一章：緒論．論述研究動機、方法，及外緣問題之概述． 第二章：共分為四節．從社會風氣，以及實際環境之需要，考察士人論議禮之背景． 第三章：共分為三節，就士人本身之意識型態及行為，探求禮於當時社會之定位． 第四章：共分為五節，就以喪服議為主之論題，作一內容分析． 第五章：共分為三節．據上述之肉容分析，探求魏、晉禮論之特質． 第六章：結論．

Dissertation submitted in compliance with the requirements for the degree of Master's of Technology: Fashion, Durban Institute of Technology, 2003. / This study addresses the relationship between the clothing behaviour and identity of African South African women in the corporate world, with reference to black identity and Western style of clothes. Central to these two issues the study tried to focus on the factors which may have an influence on the clothing behaviour of African South African women. Clothing as communication and factors which influence people's clothing behaviour were also covered to find out why people wear the clothes they wear. The sample consisted of African South African women (n =100) in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal. Research was conducted by means of a structured questionnaire. The qualitative method provided a systematic investigation of the topic. The research methods included descriptive and inferential Statistics. Three hypotheses were formulated for the investigation. Each of the clothing variables was examined relative to the hypothesized relationship. There were fifty-one clothing variables employed in the analyses. The results exhibited a need for ethnically influenced clothes for African South Africans. The findings indicate that there was symbolic meaning attached to ethnically influenced clothing and beads, and that the symbolism attached to clothing items can influence a person's clothing behaviour. Recommendations were noted and followed by the Conclusion. / M

This study investigated significant influences including Hispanicness, traditionalism and demographic characteristics on Hispanic women's purchase behavior when selecting work and social activity apparel. A sample of 114 Hispanic women from a Hispanic professional organization or businesses in the Dallas and El Paso, Texas areas. Surveys were collected by mail or administered to subjects. Analyses included frequencies, percentages, t-tests, and Pearson's product-moment correlations. For both situations, mean scores indicated the most influential information sources were: clothing displays, friends, and female family members, while the most used acquisition sources were: department and specialty stores. In both situations, these women had very feminine appearance attributes and very feminine and fashionable clothing style. Hispanicness, traditionalism, and demographic characteristics made some difference when selecting work and social activity apparel.

This thesis examined the relationships among immediacy of dress factors and affective learning factors as they pertain to relational communication. College students (N = 482) completed questionnaires indicating perceptions of selected nonverbal immediacy behaviors associated with their teacher's attire. The research predicted that there would be relationships between and among power and affinity of dress, dress immediacy and nonverbal immediacy. Further predictions were made concerning the associations among these variables, affective learning outcomes, and other teacher criteria. Analysis indicated that power of dress, affinity of dress and dress immediacy were viable nonverbal immediacy concepts which related to affective learning outcomes. Research findings indicated that certain instructor variables may also influence these relationships.