Distinguishing fashion consciousness from fashion involvement: review and survey

Purpose Despite the large corpus of literature on fashion consciousness (FC) and fashion involvement (FI), both terms are often used synonymously, resulting in conflicting or mixed results. We address this limitation by offering a critical analysis of FC and FI, with a specific focus on their measurements. Design/methodology/approach A snowball sample survey of 720 respondents were conducted for factor analysis aimed at assessing reliability and validity. Specifically, following discriminant and concurrent validity between FC and FI. Findings Our empirical research underscores the clear distinction between FC and FI in terms of their theoretical definitions and measurements. We strongly discourage their use as interchangeable/synonymous terms or use of other potentially related terminology. Originality/value Our contribution clarifies the differences between FI and FC. While acknowledging that authors may resort to linguistic repetition in their discourse, we advocate for consistently using the precise terms “fashion involvement” and “fashion consciousness” whenever feasible. This study has the potential to inform future knowledge development and literature reviews in the field.