Dressing "in code": Clothing rules, propriety, and perceptions.

Does dressing in line with societal clothing rules make a woman appear more professional and competent? We used a within-subjects design and tested if participants rated women dressed in compliance with school and workplace clothing rules more positively than women not dressed in compliance with rules. Participants (N = 89) at a mid-sized mid-western university rated 10 pictures of women captured from the internet on 11 attributes. Participants rated the five women dressed following clothing rules higher on a composite measure of positive attributes (intelligent, competent, powerful, organized, efficient, and professional), F(1, 86) = 68.

Power and provocativeness: The effects of subtle changes in clothing on perceptions of working women.

The current study investigates the effects of subtle changes in professional women's dress on women's perceptions of power and competence. We replicate and extend Howlett, Pine, Cahill, Orakcioglu, and Fletcher's (2015) research showing that women in provocative clothing are rated as less competent. We used a larger sample, tested a second independent variable, and fine-tuned the design for higher face validity.