#4 What is the connection between psychology and fashion? How can psychology help us better understand consumer behavior?

In this episode, we explore the psychology of consumer behavior with Carolyn Mair, PhD, and uncover the hidden factors behind our fashion choices.

Carolyn explains how cognitive psychology influences consumer behavior, the allure of fast fashion, and why it has more success using psychological triggers in its marketing than sustainable brands. 

The conversation also explores fashion's broader impact on our identity and social interactions, offering insights into how sustainable brands can better communicate and connect with consumers.

In this interview, you'll learn:

• What motivates us to buy, and how psychology can help us understand consumer behavior.


• Why we're drawn to fast fashion, and why sustainable brands struggle to achieve the same level of popularity.


• Why consumers keep buying fast fashion despite knowing its negative impact on people and the planet.


• How the sustainable fashion community can leverage consumer psychology to drive meaningful change.


• The most effective strategies for sustainable brands to communicate their value proposition to consumers who are accustomed to fast fashion.

This conversation is a crash course in understanding consumer psychology and how it can drive more ethical and sustainable practices in the fashion industry and beyond.

Short on Time?

• 00:00 Intro


• 4:51 What a cognitive psychologist does


• 08:43 The connection between psychology and fashion.


• 11:38 How fashion impacts consumer behavior.


• 14:40 How psychology can help us understand consumer behavior.


• 16:13 How marketers utilize psychology in their marketing strategies.


• 22:13 Is fashion today truly about self-expression, or is it more about fitting in and social signaling?


• 30:51 How fast fashion brands influence purchasing decisions


• 33:08 How sustainable brands use psychological triggers to get people to buy.


• 40:35 What is it about luxury that people are OK with exclusivity vs sustainable fashion?


• 47:43 Strategies for educating consumers about the social and environmental impact of clothing.


• 58:55 What the fashion industry needs to focus on from a behavioral science POV.


• 1:02:03 Takeaways for sustainability-focused brands.

Episode Resources:

• Connect with Professor Carolyn Mair HERE

• Connect with Brittany Sierra HERE

• RSVP for the Psychology of Overconsumption with Patagonia HERE

• Become an SFF Insider HERE

Produced by The Sustainable Fashion Forum