For as long as mankind has been around, mental health issues have always been a problem among all populations of all origins. Christopher Senekki has seen this, and has decided to take a look through the looking glass and analyze it, dissect the problem, and solve it in the best way he can – through better self-perception, that is.
Mental Health And Its Effects – Through The Looking Glass
Confidence is one of the many factors that can affect – and is affected by – poor mental health, and that’s what Senekki is well aware of. He knows that someone’s wardrobe, and overall appearance, can deeply affect the way they perceive themselves – he knows that all too well – and so, he’s decided he absolutely ought to use his voice and try to do something about it two decades ago, and he’s still continuing to bring attention to the importance of the often-forgotten men’s mental health topic.
The Effects Of Style On Mental Health – Dress To Impress
The best part is, his mind’s most likely in the right place, along with his heart. In a research study conducted in 2014 by Professor Karen J. Pine at the University of Hertfordshire, it has been clearly demonstrated that students tended to have a boosted confidence when wearing superhero-themed clothing (in this case, a lovely Superman shirt), and female students were found to actually perform worse in math tests than those who wore a simple sweater during the same test. Another notable example of this odd yet very much existing effect would be the fact that wearing a traditional white lab coat seemed to surprisingly improve people’s mental agility, most likely due to its association to doctors and other professionals in the field of science.
In short, not only does what you wear matter, it very much has the ability to genuinely change your attitude and how you see yourself. Remember the students with the Superman shirts? They also rated themselves as more likeable while wearing them when compared to students wearing normal clothing or their “old selves” wearing their usual styles. An increase in their perception of strength was also noted.
That’s right, folks.
Not only does the Superman shirt increase your confidence, it also makes you feel physically stronger. And, really, isn’t that what everyone secretly wants?
We Style The Street – Promoting Good Style And Well-being
With Professor Pine’s research in mind, we should move on and look at Senekki’s efforts to bring attention both to impeccable fashion AND men’s mental health, the stigma surrounding such a topic, and the encouragement of people to feel good as themselves through the power of style. His mission is to make the topic itself easier to talk about, and he has been known to take his time and respond to anyone that reaches out to him – which is something a lot of us should do nowadays.
Although the study’s results are bound to raise a couple eyebrows in the room, Senekki wholly agrees with the overall conclusion, and he has agreed that such effects can be found in everyday life – from the confident and well-dressed co-worker, to the down-in-the-dumps mismatch-styled young person.
Most importantly, as the world grows cold and distanced when it comes to such topics, we need more people like Senekki bringing attention to these issues through any means possible – and fashion seems to be the one thing that is able to bring the attention back to both incredible style and the much-needed talks about men’s mental health, its implications, and how we, overall, can help with the whole thing.
To learn more about Christopher’s mission, here his Instagram: @s__christopher
