Psychologist reveals parents are the number one factor in our fashion choices

Sophie Collins

Our parents are the number one factor when it comes to our fashion choices, according to research

We’ve all turned to our friends, parents or extended family when we’re preparing for an event or outing that we want to look nice for.

Whether it’s selecting the perfect suit, dress, shoes or accessories, they’re the people who are always going to give us their honest opinions.

Well, according to fashion psychologist, Dr Dion Terrelonge, our parents or guardians actually play a very important role in our future fashion choices.

During adolescence, our elders often bestow upon us their wisdom on all things fashion, beauty and life, which ultimately shapes us as people.

But did you know their influence can forever be seen in our wardrobe choices and home styling options.

Dr. Terrelonge said: “The way we dress is borne of a developmental process and in its infancy is influenced by the fashion tastes of our parents, both in how they dressed us and in how they dressed themselves.

“Our parents and carers are most often our first examples of fashion and influence in ways we may not be conscious of – whether it’s in the things we like or now dislike. For example, deciding not to wear fuschia because our mother wore the colour a great deal.”

She went on to explain why adolescence is the most important time in our fashion lives and said:

“Adolescence is when we are most likely to experiment with clothes and begin more deeply asking the question of who am I? – who am I to my family, to myself, and to others.

“In part, we use clothing to test and address these questions – trying on different identities for size, gauging our peers’ responses and seeing if the style feels like us.

“This common time of experimentation and exploration is why so pivotal trends that we know and love have come from teenage movements – Punk, Mods and Rockers, Emo and Hip-Hop.”

She then concluded that it is simple, “we use clothing and how we dress to signal who we are to ourselves and who we are to others, as a means of indicating our social tribes, values, and personalities.”