Abstract:
This study explores the role of important values and predominant identity in the dress practices of
female Muslim students attending a university in South Africa. Data were collected through a selfadministered
questionnaire using a purposive convenience sample of 200 female Muslim students. A
cluster analysis was used to divide participants into groups based on their dress practices. The
sample could be divided into two groups: those who follow less modest and those who follow more
modest dress practices. An independent t-test was calculated to determine if there was a significant
difference between the important values and predominant identity of the less modest and more
modest groups. The results revealed differences in the significance of certain values and predominant
identity. The more modest group placed more importance on religious values, while the
less modest group attributed more importance to social values than the more modest group. For
the more modest group their Muslim identity was more predominant than for the less modest
group. Despite these differences, both groups tended to communicate a hybrid identity, as aspects of
Islamic and Western thought and behavior were synthesized in each individual’s dress practice. The
study offers benefits to scholars interested in the social-cultural aspects of clothing by showing how
people manipulate their appearances and cultural forms to create a specific reality and to adapt to
multicultural environments (e.g. campuses).
