For people whose sexual and gender identity is non-normative, when their identity deviates from the dominant norms of cisgender heterosexuality, life can be difficult. For many people, the most essential characteristics of life can cause fear and much deliberation. For their master's thesis, Sociology alumnus Maaike Weitering researched people who live outside, between or beyond gender binarity. They looked at how they navigate between the embodied and material experience of gender through clothing and how they dress. They conducted their research in an extraordinary, delicate and reasonable way. On November 28, they received the Unilever Research Prize 2024 for their thesis.
Clothing serves as a dominant marker of what are often binary gender categories of man/woman. Maaike investigated how people who do not fit into such binary categories negotiate dominant clothing norms and use clothing to express their identity.
Such negotiations and the fears that surround them often remain out of sight, but this master's thesis carefully and theoretically sophisticatedly brings them to light. Their relevance for understanding and acknowledging the difficulties—and joys—of dressing for non-binary or genderqueer people is very high. Society needs this kind of attention and empathy for the daily struggles of people outside the dominant categories.
The use of a queer adaptation of the wardrobe interview, in which respondents are interviewed in their private homes, in front of their wardrobes, is methodologically innovative. It is a good way to gain insight into their daily lives and the meaning-making directly related to their clothing. A surprising but clear conclusion emerged: the wardrobe is a political space. It expresses dominant norms and gives rise to ways of dealing with them through communality, subversiveness or play.
Garments provoke reactions
A garment that makes this clear is the dress. The dress goes both ways: for some, it feels restrictive, like being pushed into certain expectations - but for others, it feels liberating. Either because it deviates from social expectations (for example, in transfeminine people) or because it can feel powerful to wear a garment that is usually strictly feminine in Western societies. But then, in a way that does not comply with this purely feminine, such as a dress that takes all the shape out of your body or emphasizes "masculine" characteristics such as large shoulders. It can also be a (trans)masculine body with a tiny pink dress with frayed edges and glitter.
The concept of 'uniform' is interesting because, for some people, a "uniform" means, for example, an androgynous garment. This implies something everyone can wear, regardless of gender, such as dungarees. This can feel very safe because it brings a certain kind of invisibility or camouflage. For other participants, a "uniform" means a clothing style belonging to a particular group or cultural identity. This can be fun but also restrictive - after all, a person has multiple sides to them, and not just (e.g.) "the artist", "the Asian woman", etc. Again, uniforms play a role in questions about visibility and recognisability, but in a different way.
Thesis supervisor Willem Schinkel: "As a supervisor, I am proud that I could learn from Maaike's work - her theoretical finesse, methodological acumen and generous attention to the details that matter. My understanding of the difficulties of queer lives and of the inventive repertoires that genderqueer people develop to deal with them has increased enormously, and I am grateful for that. It helps in my daily encounters with students and many others."
Maaike Weitering | Something Off My Chest. Queer Sensibilities of Clothing, Gender, and the Body
Scriptie bij het masterprogramma Sociologie: Engaging Public Issues
Scriptiebegeleider: prof. Willem Schinkel
They graduated Cum Laude with a 9.5 for their thesis
About the Unilever Research Prize
Unilever Research Prize rewards top young scientists whose research contributes positively to solving some of the world's most pressing problems. The annual award ceremony is a significant event for Unilever and strengthens its relationship with science. The Unilever Research Awards have existed since 1956, and this year marks the 68th anniversary.
ScriptieMaaikeWeitering_SomethingOffMyChest
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Marjolein Kooistra, communicatie ESSB, 0683676038, kooistra@essb.eur.nl