The Macro-Micro Interface in the Construction of Individual Fashion Forms and Meanings

Abstract

This paper is written in response to Kaiser, Nagasawa, and Hutton's (1995) reliance on symbolic interactionism in an effort to develop a bridge between micro and macro level phenomena to explain how individual fashion consumers come to accept new appearance styles and attach meaning to them. By examining the macro-micro distinction in the social sciences suggested by Ritzer (1990), I argue that symbolic interactionism cannot possibly facilitate these goals. I then use Ritzer to develop a heuristic model of macro-micro level phenomena that influence the way fashion consumers attach meaning to fashion forms and appearances. My primary concern in this paper is with macro-level phenomena, which includes cultural-system arbiters that, in turn, influence fashion-system arbiters. I argue that these two categories of macro-level phenomena then influence micro-level phenomena, including the negotiation of meanings among individuals, although influence between macro and micro levels is not unidirectional, and the more micro-level phenomenon of self-negotiation is a process whereby individuals ascribe meaning to fashion. Finally, I call for the systematic exploration of levels of analysis in assessing existing fashion theory to discover areas of scholarship that remain neglected.