Do Name Brand Clothing Affect Children and Teens Lifestyles and Interactions With One Another?

Take a moment to put yourself in the position of an adolescent who has felt like an outsider from their own school. Weather it be because they don't have name brand clothes or don't have the latest on trend shoes. In a school where everyone wears the same thing will be a much safer and easier place for everyone in general. This is where school uniforms come in and give multiple solutions to both teens and their parents.

An educational institution was not intended to be a platform for students to parade fashion, wealth or privilege. Too often, kids are preoccupied and obsessed about popularity, social standings, and how they can fit in. How children dress themselves often separates the haves from the have-nots. Households that are struggling to make ends meet are not financially able to keep up with fashion trends and can be targeted for bullying. When peers are dressed in uniforms, the social class distinction becomes much less obvious, prejudice and discrimination will lessen; which ultimately create a less hostile environment. As a result, school uniforms will compel students to spend their time expressing themselves through other channels; such as art, music, sports, and academic achievement.

Peer pressure is the highest during your teenage years, and peer pressure to wear the right clothes is one of the strongest. Hollister is a California based clothing brand and when I attended junior high it was the brand that everyone wore. After I learned about Hollister I asked my parents if they would buy me clothes so that I could fit in with everyone else. I wanted these clothes because they would allow me to fit in with everyone, I envied what they were wearing. Envy occurs at any age, and I experienced my first dose of envy at 12 years old. Any teenager is envious of what others are wearing regardless of what clique they belong to. I didn’t necessarily want Hollister because of how the clothes looked, I wanted the clothes because it

Imagine a high school that is filled with reckless, hormone-crazed teenagers that have no restrictions on how they should dress. Their “Outfits of the Day” are more of a concern than what they learn in school. Their clothing choices becomes an interruption to their education. This is the mindset of teenagers of schools that do not have any dress code implementation.

Middle school is seen as the hardest time in a teenager’s life due to bullying, changing bodies, and constant need to fit in. Instead of trying to find themselves and be their own person, they strip themselves of their individuality and strive to fit in. Although I repressed many of my middle school memories, I will always remember the fad of wearing brand name clothes. When I was growing up, brand names such as Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle Outfitters, Hollister, and Aeropostale were seen as the most important things in the world. Instead of realizing at that time how silly it was to pay fifty dollars for a hoodie that would soon shrink in the dryer, I conformed just like everyone else and bought the clothes just to fit in. Similar to this, although on a whole different level, many light skinned African Americans conformed during the Harlem Renaissance. Since some of them were light enough, they could pass to be Hispanic or White. This gave them more opportunities, yet they could easily lose sense of themselves and their culture. Conformity

Teenagers are at that age where they are trying to figure out who they are and what they want to be, or to look like. They have this strong desire to look “cool” in front of their friends. They must have the best and latest designer brands, smartphones and bags. With the influence of celebrity lives, they have put an emphasis on how important material objects are and they would go to any length to obtain

Our consumers’ perception of the brand, J.Crew, usually entails the style they advertise in commercials and television. J.Crew can be seen as a style with practical women in finely cut business suits and overcoats. When most people visualize the company they visualize classy and professional clothing. The problem is they are not seen as the standard, like Gap, for instance, they lack the basic necessities to attract young college students. J.Crew just wants to maintain its professional status, but attract a younger crowd who are establishing their position in the real world applying and interview for jobs. When walking into the store, consumers see bright lights and a variety of fabrics and styles. The dresses range from simple around the house to dressy date-night dresses. The one-thing consumers’ can expect to see when entering J. Crew is the variety of clothing. Consumers’ can perceive clothing brands based on what they see on

The trendy apparel that stores offer to the public makes a person have the ability to be fashionable since it can be adapted to our own preferences, and it also shows how companies influence people through the way they dress. Clothing companies among others create and implant images into people’s minds that insinuate that consumers should follow in order to be able to fit in the society that is shaped by the beliefs of corporations and industries. While it should be okay for fashion to be promoted since it is a way to express oneself, it is important to note the ways how companies advertise clothing and current fashions, since it reflects how our products are carefully designed to control our

Ask teenagers what their views are on fitting in with the crowd. Many will reply that they want to fit in, be like the popular kids, or go with the flow. The majority of teens who reply that they want to stand out still base many of their actions on fitting in with others. Ask people why they hang out where they do. Common responses are that friends hang out there, or that it is a popular place. Why do people wear what they wear? Typical replies are that the clothes are in style, or that the popular kids wear them. Many of the actions of teenagers are driven by a desire to fit in.

Wearing school uniform enables students to concentrate more on studies and less on clothing and other unproductive activities. The reality is students tend to waste a great amount of time deciding what to wear since there exists a war among students whether whose outfit looks the best. In adolescence period, students extremely care about peer-acceptance. They are likely to assume that if they look good, they will receive more friends and also more fame. Students will be less concerned about their appearance if everyone wears the same outfit. Since school uniform can reduce students’ attention on their outlook, it will allow them to turn some of unnecessary focus into learning. Induction of concentration in studying thus leads to the improvement of academic performance.

Do you think that what people wear defines who they are? My answer to this question is no, because my brother, Andrew, gets so torn up when we go somewhere that someone will see him and make fun of him, because he isn't wearing the brands that all the other kids are wearing. My mom tells him that who cares if anyone sees you, that it is their fault to make fun of someone they don't know or someone they do know. I tell myself that there are really cool people out there, but we make fun of them because they ain't wearing what we are wearing. People look at them and say ''there not wearing what we are wearing,'' and go on about their business. Brands don't define people, because there could be a really cool

Opponents think that when children select their own clothing, they can develop confidence and independence, vital characteristics through the personality development and adult success. Controlling extremely the socialization process of students will harm them as an adult, because they will not be prepared for the real world, indeed by their appearances. In addition, opponents argue that when students are limited about what they are going to wear, they will find other ways to offend the authority. Without a way out of expression in their clothes, they will turn out to other inappropriate alternatives of self-expression, such as nontraditional hair styles or make-up, or the worst revolting against school authorities and parents by the way they behave and act. It is obvious that children, especially those in middle and high school, are constantly concerned about their appearance that way, wearing a school uniform will minimize this concern. They also believe schools can help students avoid clothing that contains slogans, short or tight clothing; while giving them

When kids get to come to school in their own clothes they can focus better and they feel more comfortable in their own outfits and they don't have to worry about like everybody else.

School uniforms help maintain a sense of equality amongst the students. They help rid any socioeconomic barriers that may be causing certain students, or groups of students, to be alienated from the rest of the student body (Wilde). In other words, the financial status of a student’s parents no longer matters. Parents “are no longer pressured to buy the latest fashions, and they spend less on their children's clothing” (Isaacson). They no longer feel obligated to keep their children up to date with the latest fashion trends. Due to this, students are less prone to form cliques, which only lead to the alienation of students ("School Uniforms.") At the same time, students no longer feel inferior or superior to other students. No longer do students respect each other on the basis of how stylish they look. Their clothes do not gauge how popular they are in the school. Instead, uniforms force people to look at each

Often times teenagers look up to and follow celebrities; they provide much sway as to what is considered “in-style” or “cool.” Musical artists Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez, are very popular to the younger generations. Many children dress in the brands they wear