Fit issues in ready-to-wear clothing for African-American female college students based on the body shapes

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study was to explore actual ready-to-wear (RTW) clothing fit for African-American female college students and their satisfaction with it. Seventy-two African-American female participants volunteered for the study. Their body shapes were classified into several groups using bust, waist, and hip measurements. Fit of RTW clothing was assessed based on participants’ body shapes. They were manually measured with a tape measure and were also surveyed via questionnaire to identify their actual and self-reported body shapes and examine satisfaction with clothing fit. Findings of this study demonstrated that most African-American female students tended to wear RTW tight-fitting clothing, especially around waist but did not feel uncomfortable. This result makes sense because they psychologically assume their body shapes to be an hourglass shape as shown in their self-report. However, each body shape group exhibits its discriminative satisfaction with tight-fitting clothing around bust and hips.