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Broadly speaking, it is all about fashion. As I said, dress conventions are situational. These conventions are either mainstream now, or are in the process of mainstreaming. I can easily remember what colored hair communicated when it first became a fashion statement in the late '70s, and it isn't the same thing it communicates today. Today it's the soft-punk look. It is supposed to say "I'm unconventional but you don't have to cross the street when you see me coming." Even more importantly, it also identifies you to others with similar fashion sense that you are one of their tribe. People do look for these cues either consciously or otherwise for clues about who you are, or pretend to be.
Someone did obliquely point out the suit, in that we were told that such a person could never land a job in the San Francisco high tech startup world. It would be considered an "abnormal" and even "disruptive" fashion statement in that environment.
”I'm unconventional but you don't have to cross the street when you see me coming”
Okay, so what does a suit mean? ”I'm conventional and kind, so just look past me”?
It is this kind of judgemental way based on what a person is wearing that I don't understand. I mean, just because someone wears a suit I'm not judging that person at all. Maybe the person doesn't even like wearing a suit, but does because the job at the office requires it. Maybe someone who dyes their hair does it because they like it and without trying to be a part of a tribe?
I do know that certain types of clothing can (rightfully so) signal a type of life style or ”tribe belonging”, but at the same time – maybe we shouldn't always make assumptions about a person based on what they wear. Or maybe we can, but we shouldn't be so definitive about it and at least not make a final judgement until we actually get to know the individual.
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Maybe you missed the punk movement of the late '70s. The appearance was a deliberate association with a tribe of angry, disaffected, and often nihilistic individuals. They were easy to spot, and often best to avoid if you didn't belong. To start, at least. Eventually it morphed into much more of a fashion statement, as these things do.
What does a suit mean? It would be situational of course, but if you walked into your local bank and the manager was unshaven, wearing shorts, a t-shirt and flip-flops, and it wasn't casual Friday or Halloween, don't tell me it wouldn't seem out of place, if not alarming.
We can pretend that we don't interpret these signals, but because we're human, we do.
Yes, I know about the punk movement. Like I said, there's absolutely some generalizations to be done about fashion, but I just think a more open mind should have the last say. And if you dye your hear in an unusual color it doesn't necessarily have to mean anything or have anything to do with some ”tribe belonging”.
”We can pretend that we don't interpret these signals, but because we're human, we do.”
In some ways, yes, but just because I'm human I also try to think twice instead of making hasty or rather groundless conclusions (which our minds generally seems very good at).
Being open-minded has absolutely nothing to do with it. As I've already said, I'm not making so much a judgement as an observation. Whether they are fully aware of it or not, people do tend to present themselves in the way they hope to be seen. Designers of consumer products know this full well, so I'm not offering up some sort of radical theory here, let alone suggesting some sort of prejudice.