Life Matters - Separate stories podcast How your environment shapes your dress code
Dec 1, 2025
In a lively chat, Alex Haslam, a Professor of social and organisational psychology, dives into how our environment shapes dress codes. He reveals why double pluggers are a workplace staple in Queensland but not in Sydney. The influence of weather and cultural trends on our attire is fascinating, as well as how group norms can enforce casual rules. Haslam discusses the balance between personal freedom and societal expectations, illuminating how fashion can signal hierarchies and the complexities of dressing for different events.
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Dress As Shared Social Signal
- Dress always carries shared norms, values and identity signals that people use to project themselves.
- Standards persist even when rules are violated because violations reference a common sense of appropriateness.
Informality Has Its Own Rules
- Informality still contains bounded rules and can itself signal identity when someone dresses formally within a casual group.
- Events like the festive season make dress norms negotiable and highlight those tensions.
Ask Others When In Doubt
- Ask others attending an event for guidance when dress norms are unclear or climate complicates choices.
- Use colleagues with higher status as reference points to avoid looking out of place.