4B002B - Styling the Self: Fashion, Trends, and Cultural Signals 01 Sep 2026 - 31 Aug 2032 | Version 1

Associated Module Information

Module Code: 4B002B
Module Title: Styling the Self: Fashion, Trends, and Cultural Signals
Faculty: Faculty of Business and Creative Industries
Faculty Group: Fashion, Marketing and Photography
Faculty Sub Group: Fashion
Module Leader: Jennifer Whitney
Module Team: Torunn Kjolberg, Sofia Christidi, Emma Jones, Sally Phillips, Jayne Barne, Susan James, Steven Wright, Philip Harfield
First Intended Intake: SEP 2026 Final Year of Intake: 2031
Date Closed:
Credit Value: 30 Credit Level: 4
Language: English
Percentage of Module Taught in Welsh: 30
Equivalent Module:
HECOS codes: 100054 - fashion
HECOS Code Weighting: 100

Document Version Information

Version 1
Valid From 01 Sep 2026
Valid To 31 Aug 2032

Module Aims

The main aims of the module are: 

  • To explore the relationship between the fashion, culture, and society.  

  • To introduce students to design process, methods, visual language and problem-solving skills.  

  • To facilitate the development of research, critical reflection, presentation, and communication skills relevant to the subject area. 

Content Summary

This module explores the “who” behind the fashion industry by examining how identity, history, culture, and society shape who we are and what we wear. Using this as a base, the module gives students a toolkit of design strategies to solve problems using a process driven approach and understand visual language. As a shared module, it draws on both marketing and design sources to support research, creativity, process, testing and critical inquiry. Students will investigate consumer psychology, demographics, trend research and analysis, and the cultural forces that influence style, linking these to the drivers of creativity and problem solving to ensure that their future creative work is aligned to the user and is purposeful. This module reveals how people both shape and are shaped by fashion’s evolving landscape. The intertwining nature of marketing and design is a core understanding for any fashion professional. 

Learning and Teaching Methods

Activity Type Hours
Practical classes & Workshops 54
Formative Assessment 2
Guided Study 184
Summative Assessment 60
Total Hours Selected 300

Learning Outcomes

# Learning Outcome
LO1 Demonstrate an informed awareness of the relationship between fashion, culture, trend, consumers and society.
LO2 Apply design process to produce a creative informed outcome.

Module Requisites

N/A

Assessment Criteria

Assessment Category Assessment Type Description Duration Word Count Weight (%) Best of? Pass Mark
Synchronous Onsite Practical Assessment Practical Coursework (Onsite) Allows students to select a format and topic that complement their course (Fashion Design or Fashion Marketing) 0 6000 100 No 40

Assessment Matrix

Assessment Type Learning Outcomes
LO1 LO2
Practical Coursework (Onsite)

Reading List

Week 1  

Focus: How historical events and societal shifts influence fashion; understanding fashion as a timeline shaped by human behaviour. 

  • Book/Chapter: Breward, Christopher. Fashioning London: Clothing and the Modern Metropolis. (Ch. 1–3) 

  • Article: Steele, Valerie. “Fashion and History.” Fashion Theory, 1998. 

  • Optional: Arnold, Rebecca. Fashion, Desire and Anxiety: Image and Morality in the 20th Century, Ch. 2–3 

Week 2  

Focus: Self-expression, identity formation, and personal style; intro to consumer psychology. 

  • Book/Chapter: Entwistle, Joanne. The Fashioned Body: Fashion, Dress and Modern Social Theory, Ch. 1–2 

  • Article: Solomon, Michael R. “Consumer Behavior: Fashion and Identity.” Journal of Consumer Research, 1983 

  • Optional: Simmel, Georg. Fashion (classic essay on fashion and social psychology) 

Week 3 

Focus: Cultural codes, subcultures, communities, and collective identities shaping style. 

  • Book/Chapter: Hebdige, Dick. Subculture: The Meaning of Style, Ch. 1–3 

  • Article: Polhemus, Ted. “Streetstyle: From Subculture to Mainstream.” Fashion Theory, 1994 

  • Optional: Entwistle, Joanne. “The Dressed Body: Fashion, Identity, and Culture.” Body & Society, 2000 

Week 4 

Focus: Consumer motivations, behaviors, personas, fashion tribes, and emotional/social drivers of dressing. 

  • Book/Chapter: Solomon, Michael R. Consumer Behavior: Buying, Having, and Being, Ch. 5–6 

  • Article: Hines, T. & Bruce, M. “Fashion Marketing and the Consumer.” International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 2007 

  • Optional: Jackson, Tim. Motivations and Emotions in Fashion Consumption, Ch. 3 

Week 5  

Focus: Methods for identifying and analyzing trends; macro vs. micro trends; cultural forecasting. 

  • Book/Chapter: Kawamura, Yuniya. Fashion-ology: An Introduction to Fashion Studies, Ch. 4–5 

  • Article: Davis, Fred. Fashion, Culture, and Identity, Ch. 5 (Trends and subcultural adoption) 

  • Optional: Rocamora, Agnes. “Fashioning the City: Paris, London, and New York.” Journal of Consumer Culture, 2009 

Week 6 

Focus: Synthesizing research; understanding the interaction between individuals, society, and the fashion system. Application to design/marketing practice. 

  • Book/Chapter: Fletcher, Kate. Sustainable Fashion and Textiles: Design Journeys, Ch. 6–7 (future-facing perspective) 

  • Article: McRobbie, Angela. “Clubs to Companies: Notes on Fashion, Subcultural Capital and the Labour of Creativity.” Cultural Studies, 1998 

  • Optional:  Trend reports (for contemporary application) 

 

Indicative reading list 

 

Arnold, C (2009) Ethical Marketing and the new consumer. Wiley: Chichester, UK 

Cottrell, S. (2019) The Study Skills Handbook. 5th edn. London: Red Globe Press. 

De La Haye, A., & Mendes, V. D. (2021).?Fashion since 1900?(Third edition.). Thames & Hudson. 

Entwistle, J. (2015)?The Fashioned Body: Fashion, dress and modern social theory.?Cambridge: Polity 

Holland, G and Jones, R (2017). Fashion Trend Forecasting. Laurence King UK 

Howells R., and Negreiros, J. (2018) Visual Culture. Cambridge: Polity Press. 

Hunter, C. (2019) Threads of Life: A History of the World Through the Eye of a Needle. Sceptre: London.  

Mair, C. (2018) The Psychology of Fashion. London: Routledge. 

Posner, H. (2015) Marketing Fashion. London: Laurence King 

Pouillard, V. (ed) (2023)?Routledge History of Fashion and Dress, 1800 to the Present?Routledge 

Raymond, M. (2019) The Trend Forecaster’s Handbook Flexibound. Laurence King Publishing 

Riello, G. and P. McNeil, eds. (2010)?The Fashion History Reader: Global Perspectives.?London: Routledge 

Rose, G. (2012) Visual Methodologies: An Introduction to Researching with Visual Materials. 3rd edn. London; Thousand Oaks, Calif: SAGE Publishing 

Steele, V. (2018) Pink: The History of a Punk, Pretty, Powerful Colour. London: Thames and Hudson. 

Thomas, D. (2019) Fashionopolis: The Price of Fast Fashion and the Future of Clothes. New York: Apollo. 

Tseëlon, E. (ed.) (2014).?Fashion and ethics. Bristol: Intellect 

Welters, L., & Lillethun, A. (2018).?Fashion history: a global view. London: Bloomsbury.