Clothing as a threat: aesthetics-based discrimination in the workplace

The focus of the research is the discrimination of the Goth subculture members (ingroup) by those who conform to the dominant social norm (outgroup), discrimination when based solely on clothing style choices in the workplace. Using interviews & questionnaires, and applying theories of Social Identity, Self-Categorization, Self-Determination, Conformity, we found that aesthetics-based discrimination may begin with limited knowledge of the subculture depending on i) the source of information about the subculture (media, friends & acquaintances, family) and ii) the quality of interpersonal contact with the subculture (e.g. cordial, conflictual…). This limited knowledge is a major contributing factor of outgroup perception of opposed values and low social level of the ingroup. Negative contact reinforces discrimination and contributes to negative perception of clothing style choices. Aesthetics-based discrimination is thus due to the outgroup understanding of clothing style choices as a label of undesirable subculture rather than about clothing itself.