I.Introduction
As adolescents are in the stage that interest in outward appearance increases, clothing attitude in adolescence is important than ever. Clothing in this period is used as a tool for gaining self-confidence, conformity with cohort group and social approval, and the state of clothing adolescents wear affects their mental state (Choi, 2012). In addition, adolescents are the most important customers of clothing industry for their high awareness of fashion and they show a tendency not reduce consumption during the recession comparing to adults, so it is important to understand exact taste of adolescents. High school students who belong to the late adolescence out of adolescent period have a lot of chances to select clothing according to one’s intention and experience a great deal of physical and psychological changes, and there are also a lot of differences amongst high school students for their clear individuality and ego. Clothing and school uniform attitude varies amongst high school students group a lot depending on the clothing attitude and tendency, so there is a necessity of a research on the aforementioned. Among the studies that analyzed adolescents by classifying into group so far are an analytical study on the physical characteristics by body type that classified middle school girls (Won, 1998), an analytical study on middle․high school students’clothing and school uniform wearing attitude by group (Kim, 2007) and understanding of the characteristics of formalized high school students group according to school uniform attitude (Jeon & Kim, 2007), but the studies conducted by classifying into groups are considered insignificant as compared to other studies on clothing. And studies on high school students’ clothing and school uniform are focused centering around metropolitan area, so studies capable of achieving a regional balance should be conducted. This study aims to analyze high school students’ clothing attitude and school uniform wearing attitude by group targeting Gyeongnam area. For the foregoing objectives, this study carries out formalization of clothing attitude by group depending on the result of factor analysis of clothing attitude first, and looks into the clothing attitude and tendency by group according to demographic characteristics, and further investigates perception difference in wearing of school uniform and wearing attitude according to clothing attitude.
II.Background
1.Characteristics of late adolescence
Characteristics of late adolescence: Physiological and physical growth, social and psychological maturity that occur in adolescent period interact each other, which has a close relationship with clothing behavior behavior. Sexual interest also increases in this period together with physical maturity and adolescents want to look more attactive to the opposite sex with increase in the interest in the opposite sex, and they are really interested in one’s appearance or behavior, which makes them feel that everyone recognizes one’s appearance and behavior to the same extent as one does. For the foregoing reasons, adolescents want to gain the recognition of a group during the period through clothing, physical appearance or manner that they can see or feel directly with eyes, and such factors acts as a predominant element in one’s life by increasing interest in clothing than any other period in a life (Lee & Koo, 2009).
During the adolescence, interest in clothing is known to have an importance influence on comfort and self-confidence towards social state. Therefore, satisfaction of school uniform that the majority of students wear much of the time is considered to have an important influence in enjoying school life. Especially, high school students in the late adolescence are physically same as adults in developmental stages, having much difference in the degree of personal interest in the body. A sense of sovereignty is also developed and self-assertiveness becomes stronger and adolescents wander and experience inner conflicts between things they wish and the burden of career decision due to college entrance examination or social advance. Especially, sense of sovereignty is developed and self- assertiveness becomes stronger, and they response to one’s situation sensitively and inner loneliness to find one’s own self becomes stronger, which generates much psychological differences as well. As Korean high school students spend most of their time in school, they wear school uniforms for a long time, which exerts a profound effect on adolescents’ emotion, psychology and activity. As students are required to wear school uniforms for 3 years’high school period in a state that material, design and sewing are fixed, so students’satisfaction and wearability of school uniform is very important. With respect to the clothing in the adolescence, studies have been conducted focused mainly on the clothing and school uniform behavior according to psychological characteristics or middle․high school students’ satisfaction of school uniform that includes entire adolescence was simultaneously studied (Lee, 2003; Kim & Chung, 2000; Koh, Jin, & Shim, 2000; Kim & Kahng, 1981; Seo, Lee, & Park, 2011), or lump-sum studies on high school students’clothing attitude were conducted so far(Shin, Chun, & Choi, 2012; Koo, Ryu, & Park, 2009).
2.Preceding research
The elements of school uniform design can be classified into esthetics, symbolism, functionality and economic feasibility (Park & Seong, 1994), Esthetics makes adolescents have psychological comfort by satisfying their desire to be beautiful, and symbolism expresses the ideology of a group they are belonging, exerting a much effect on the wearer’s awareness to feel the sense of belonging. Functionality enables one’s body to be in harmony with mind concurrently with cheerful and pleasure look without discomfort when wearing a school uniform, and economic feasibility was analyzed as reasonable prices, excellent durability and easy maintenance. As a result of survey on the satisfaction of school uniform and preference of school uniform design which was conducted targeting high school girls in the advanced the study on the satisfaction of school uniform (Lim, 2004), students’satisfaction of their current school uniform was somewhat low, which showed an additional study on the design suited to their age and characteristics based on the result that high school girls were investigated that they feel school uniform is uncomfortable to act and they are unsatisfied with design, showing a significant difference in middle and high school girls' design they want to wear and design they prefer.
In the study (Lee, 2000) on male and female students' body image and satisfaction of school uniform, female students showed higher satisfaction of satisfaction of school uniform as compared to males, and among the factors of satisfaction, female students considered esthetics and status symbolism as the most important factors, whereas male students set a premium on functionality. Lee, Son and Kim (1997) conducted on male and female students' satisfaction of school uniform, interest in clothing and self-conception, satisfaction of school uniform was higher amongst female students comparing to males, and satisfaction of status symbolism, epidemicity, maintenance, detergency, physical comfort, psychological comfort and economic feasibility was all higher among female students. As for the reasons of satisfaction and dissatisfaction of school uniforms, activity and design took the majority, whereas functionality, esthetics and epidemicity were magnified importantly in factors of satisfaction of school uniform, so there is a need to raise the degree of satisfaction of school uniforms by improving the factors. Lee (2007) analyzed the actual condition of middle and high school students’wearing of school uniforms and their satisfaction focusing on Busan area. Among the studies that analyzed adolescents by classifying into groups so far, Won (1998) analyzed physical characteristics of each body type by classifying into three body types through factor analysis and group analysis for establishing middle school girls’school uniform size, and Kim, Park and Lee (2009) analyzed middle․high school students’ clothing and school uniform wearing attitude by group in the study on the attitude toward wearing of clothing and school uniform and Jeon and Kim (2007) was conducted to understand characteristics of formalized high school students group according to school uniform attitude. However, the studies classified by student groups are considered insufficient as compared to other studies on design, attitude, purchase and act toward clothing or school uniform.
III.Methods
1.Research questions
To investigate clothing attitude and school uniform wearing attitude by the groups of high school students, this study established research problems as follows. First, this study carries out formalization of clothing attitude by group. Second, this study looks into the tendency of clothing attitude by group according to demographic characteristics. Third, this study investigates difference in understanding of school uniform according to clothing attitude and wearing attitude.
2.Measurement and analysis
For an empirical research, this study used survey method and composed questions with ones (Kim & Kwon, 2002; Kim, Park, & Lee, 2009) used in the advanced researches and the researcher of this study prepared after correcting and supplementing, and prepared questions by correcting and supplementing contents through a preliminary survey. Questions in the questionnaire were composed of total 68 questions including 6 questions for measuring demographic characteristics, 26 questions for measuring high school students’clothing attitude, 24 questions for measuring high school students’attitude toward wearing of school uniform and 12 questions for investigating actual state of high school students’wearing of school uniform. Except for question of demographic characteristics, each question used five-step Likert scale. This study conducted a survey targeting 762 high school students in Gyeongnam. For statistical analysis, SPSS for Window 14.0 was used for frequency analysis, factor analysis, reliability analysis, multiple sponse analysis, cluster analysis, ANOVA analysis and Duncan’s ex-post analysis method.
3.Data collection
As for subjects of study, this study selected and investigated students attending high schools in Gyeongnam area who are currently wearing school uniforms. Subjects of study included all graders of high schools, and also included both male and female students in the range of survey to analyze difference in clothing attitude and attitude toward wearing of school uniform according to gender. In addition, even in same high school students’ period, there may be a lot of differences between academic high schools setting a goal of entering college and the vocational high schools aiming at advancing into society and getting a job after graduation. Therefore this study investigated by classifying into students attending vocational and academic high schools. Materials were collected through questionnaire response method, and a preliminary survey was conducted in February, 2012 targeting 30 students attending a coeducational school located in Gyeongnam area, and main survey was carried out from September through November, 2012 with a questionnaire that the researcher of this study prepared by correcting and supplementing problems of a survey that includes questions inappropriate to response after referring to the result of analysis of preliminary survey, and total 798 sheets of questionnaire were distributed to high school students attending high schools in Gyeongnam area, and total 762 sheets were used for analysis excluding 36 sheets including inaccurate or unfaithful answers amongs all questionnaires collected. Demographic characteristics of 762 high school students who participated in this study are as follows <Table 1>.
IV.Results and Discussion
1.Types of group of the clothing attitude
To classify into groups composed of common factors and to understand factor structure of clothing attitude of high school students in Gyeongnam area, this study conducted a factor analysis on the main factors with Verimax Rotating Method, and 6 factors having more than 1 characteristic value were extracted. Factors were named as modesty, esthetics, conformity, individuality, management and economics respectively. As a result, 4 questions are highly loaded in ‘Modesty’ and the reliability of these questions turned out to be high with .778 and 3 questions are also highly loaded in ‘esthetics’, which showed high reliability as .658 as well. And conformity, individuality, management, and economics all showed satisfactory level. As a result of carrying out Cronbach's α reliability analysis to verify reliability of respective factor, reliability was comparatively reliable as modesty .778, esthetics .658, conformity .651, individuality .606, management .598 and economics .632. Eigenvalue of respective factor was from maximum 2.457 to 1.527, and overall variable explanatory power of 6 factors was 58.466. or formalization of clothing attitude by group, this study conducted K-means group analysis targeting 6 factors generated. Results are suggested in <Table 2>. Groups of clothing attitude were finally classified into 4 in number, and a significant difference was found amongst groups according to each factor (p <.001). Group 1 as a group was named as ‘fashion seeking group’as the group marked high rate in all factors excluding modesty. Group 2 turned out to be very low in factors of esthetics and economics as compared to other groups and was generally low in other factors, so the group was named as ‘fashion indifference group’. Group 3 was named as ‘conformity group’ as the group was low in individuality comparing to other groups but was high in conformity.
Group 4 was high in conformity tendency, but was highest in modesty as compared to other groups, so it was named as ‘modesty group’.
2.Demographic differences by groups
As a result of conducting a χ2 test to investigate difference in tendency of clothing attitude according to demographic characteristics amongst 4 groups divided according to the factor of high school students’ clothing attitude, 4 groups divided according to the factor of clothing attitude varied depending on the gender, course of study, average monthly income of house, school type, grade and pocket money <Table 3>.As for the gender, the rate of fashion seeking group was the highest amongst male students as 27.6%, whereas females marked the highest rate in ‘modesty group’ with 40.9%. As for clothing attitude groups, conformity group and ‘modesty group’ were more amongst female students as compared to males. When taking a detailed look at the difference among groups by gender, 4 groups were evenly distributed in male students, whereas fashion indifference group was extremely low in female students. As for the course of study, modesty group was the highest in both vocational and academic schools with 31.4% and 32.8% respectively, but vocational schools was relatively high in ‘fashion seeking group’ with 27.5%, whereas academic schools was comparatively high in conformity factor as 30.1%. The reason fashion seeking group was low among academic high schools is because that students attending those schools have lower interest in seeking fashion as they aim to go to college. With respect to average monthly income of house, ‘less than 2 million won’ and ‘2~3 million won’ were the highest in ‘modesty group’ with 46.0% and 35.5% respectively, whereas ‘3~4 million won’ was the highest in conformity as 31.7%. More than 5 million won was the highest in ‘conformity group’ with 43.4%. As for school type, the ratio of ‘fashion seeking group’ was the highest in male schools as 31.7%, whereas ‘modesty group’ showed the highest ratio in female schools as 46.2%. And coeducational schools was the highest in ‘conformity group’ as 33.7%. While high school freshmen and sophomore were the highest in ‘modesty group’ with 32.0% and 40.0% respectively in grade factor, seniors was the highest in ‘fashion seeking group’ with 28.2%. Results show that female students respond to fashion more sensitively as they advance to the upper grades. As for monthly pocket money, ‘less than 30,000 won’ and ‘30,000~less than 60,000 won’ were the highest as 40.4% and 32.6% respectively in ‘modesty group’,whereas ‘more than 60,000 won’ took the majority in ‘fashion seeking group’ with 30.1%.
3.Wearing school uniform depending on clothing attitude by groups
1)The difference in perception toward wearing school uniform depending on groups classified by clothing attitudes
As a result of conducting reliability analysis by classifying sub-factors of recognition about wearing of school uniform into common characteristics to investigate high school students’recognition about wearing of school uniform first, 3 factors having more than 1 characteristic value toward high school students’ recognition about wearing of school uniforms, and those factors were named as activity, stability and practicality respectively. Reliability of each factor was high as activity .758, stability .684 and practicality .735. Eigenvalue of respective factor was from maximum 2.553 to 1.598, and overall variable explanatory power was 60.219. Based on the result produced as above, this study verified difference in the recognition about wearing of school uniform depending on the 4 groups classified according to the tendency of clothing attitude. As a result, this study found that activity, stability and practicality all varied depending on the tendency of clothing attitude <Table 4>. As for activity, ‘modesty group’ marked high scores as compared to ‘fashion indifference group’ and ‘conformity group’, whereas ‘fashion seeking group’ got high marks comparing to ‘fashion indifference group’. In stability factor, scores were high in order of ‘modesty group’, ‘fashion seeking group’, ‘conformity group’ and ‘fashion indifference group’. With respect to practicality, ‘modesty group’ marked high scores as compared to‘fashion seeking group’, ‘fashion indifference group’ and ‘con formity group’.
2)The attitude toward wearing school uniform depending on the propensity of clothing attitude by groups
To investigate differences in school uniform wearing attitude according to the tendency of clothing attitude, this study conducted a χ2 test concerning the degree of consent to wearing of school uniform, preferred school wear, frequency of wearing school uniform when going out, preference of famous brands when purchasing a school uniform, transformation of school uniform, opinion about transformation of school uniform, reason for transformation of school uniform etc., according to the clothing attitude of 4 groups. As a result, students varied in the degree of consent to wearing of school uniform, degree of school uniform price, preference of famous brands when purchasing a school uniform, experience that transformed school uniform during the past year, thought on transformation of school uniform, transformation of school uniform <Table 5>.
As for the degree of consent to wearing of school uniform, the ratio of ‘consent’ was relatively high in ‘conformity group’ and ‘modesty group’, but ‘fashion seeking group’ and ‘fashion indifference group’ consider it ‘just mediocre’. And the ratio of ‘objection’ was very high in ‘fashion seeking group’ comparing to other groups. As for the degree of school uniform price, 4 groups all consider it ‘expensive’. The ratio of ‘affordable’ was highest in‘fashion indifference group’ as 24.3%, whereas the lowest in ‘fashion seeking group’ as 12.3%. As for preference of famous brands when purchasing a school uniform, ‘I prefer a famous brand very much’ was relatively high in ‘fashion seeking group’ with 9.4%, whereas ‘I purchase it regardless of a brand’ was comparatively high in ‘fashion indifference group’ as 58.1%.
As to the question about ‘experience that transformed school uniform during the past year’, ‘experienced’ was high in ‘fashion seeking group’ as 78.9%, whereas the ratio of experience that transformed school uniform’ was relatively low in ‘modesty group’ as 45.3%. As for the thought about transformation of school uniform, 76.6% of students belonging to ‘fashion seeking group’ replied that ‘It is for one’s own individuality, so I consent to it’, and ‘I agree to wear school uniforms after transforming to match one’s style’ was relatively high as 17.5%, whereas the ratio of objection was relatively high in ‘modesty group’ as 14.7% disagreed by replying ‘I do not like it as it will be uncomfortable to act’ and 10.2% replied ‘It does not match students’ as Identity as a school uniform vanishes. As to the reasons for transformation of school uniform, ‘fashion seeking group’ put emphasis on the aesthetic aspect as ‘Because I do not like the design’ was relatively high as 56.1%, whereas ‘Because the size does not fit me’ was comparatively high in ‘modesty group’ as 40.4%. As for the reasons of transforming school uniforms, the main reasons presented by all 4 groups were similar to the results of low satisfaction of design and color of school uniform which were produced in the study (Kim, 2001), but ‘unfit size’ was the main reason for transformation of school uniform in study (Lee, Lee, & Koo, 2009) which was conducted centering around Busan and also differed from this study as correction of body shape was the biggest reason for transformation of school uniform (Han & Lee, 2009).
V.Conclusion
The purpose of this study is to investigate attitude of high school students in Gyeongnam area by group toward wearing of school uniforms according to the type of clothing attitude. As contents of research, this study conducted a group analysis on high school students’clothing attitude and looked into demographic characteristics according to the types of clothing attitude by group, and recognition and attitude depending on the clothing attitude of each group. High school students’ clothing attitude was classified into 6 sub-factors of modesty, esthetics, conformity, individuality, management and economics, and produced as ‘fashion seeking group’, ‘fashion indifference group’, ‘conformity group’ and ‘modesty group’ as a result of group analysis on high school students’ clothing attitude which was divided into 6 sub-factors. As a result of investigating differences in tendency of clothing attitude according to the demographic characteristics amongst groups, this study found that 4 groups divided according to the factors of clothing attitude varied depending on the gender, course of study, average monthly income of house, school type, grade and pocket money. As a result of analyzing differences in recognition about wearing of school uniform according to the tendency of clothing attitude amongst 4 groups divided according to the clothing attitude, activity, stability and practicality all varied according to the clothing attitude.
As a result of investigating differences in school uniform wearing attitude according to the tendency of clothing attitude by group, there were differences in the degree of consent to wearing of school uniform, degree of school uniform price, tendency to prefer a famous brand when purchasing a school uniform, experience that transformed school uniform during the past year, thought on transformation of school uniform and reasons for transformation of school uniform. In the tendency of clothing attitude according to the characteristics by the groups of high school students in Gyeongnam area, the result that male students were high in fashion seeking group differed from the result that fashion group was high amongst female students in advanced studies. The aforementioned is showing that male students are recently showing increased interest in appearance and fashion as much as females do, which was implies that clothing design and fashion- oriented marketing must be implemented actively targeting high school boys. And considering the fact that ‘fashion seeking group’ was highly analyzed in vocational high schools, it is considered possible to raise satisfaction of students attending vocational high schools of clothing when marketing clothing for students attending vocational high schools. While low graders were many in ‘modesty group’, upper graders were many in ‘fashion seeking group’, which means that more segmentalized satisfaction of clothing by group may be raised if such a fact is considered when planning clothing for high school students segmentalized by age. Especially, ‘fashion seeking group’ showed high tendency to prefer a famous brand and many of students have an experience that transformed school uniform, and most of them transformed school uniforms due to design, so measures to raise satisfaction of the group shall also be researched. This study is regionally- limited, so close attention shall be paid to a broad interpretation and this study limited subjects of research to vocational and academic high schools, but it is considered that future studies shall include students taking arts and physical education courses. Through the aforementioned, this study intends to utilize the results as preliminary data for marketing of clothing and school uniform that clothing orientation by group is considered by understanding recognition for clothing attitude and wearing of school uniform amongst high school students groups.
