Are we less beautiful than we think? Illusion about self-physical attractiveness

Individual perceived self-attractiveness is one of the most widely studied constructs in fashion consumer behavior study. A great deal of research has examined selfevaluation of physical attractiveness in relation to diverse explicit measures from one’s appearance management behavior (e.g. dieting, surgical procedures, and apparel selection) to upward social comparison

Midfoot and Ankle Movement Dysfunction in People with Diabetes Mellitus and Peripheral Neuropathy

People with diabetes mellitus and peripheral neuropathy (DMPN) have midfoot and ankle musculoskeletal problems, including limited joint mobility and weakness and atrophy of foot intrinsic and calf muscles. Impaired foot structures and function could lead to midfoot and ankle movement dysfunction, measured by a heel rise task. A repeated movement dysfunction during weightbearing tasks (e.g., heel rise, walking) could cause excessive stress on the plantar tissue, which is a leading cause of plantar ulceration in people with DMPN. Understanding heel rise performance and the underlying mechanisms could help prevent the sequence of events associated with plantar ulcer development in people with DMPN. In Chapter 2, we examined the effects of DMPN, limited midfoot and ankle joint mobility, and weightbearing on midfoot and ankle sagittal movements during heel rise; and characterized the midfoot and ankle position and movement trajectories of heel rise. Our results showed that midfoot and ankle plantarflexion were reduced during heel rise and non-weightbearing plantarflexion tasks in people with DMPN. Reduced midfoot and ankle plantarflexion in non-weightbearing suggests that people with DMPN had limited joint mobility. However, peak unilateral (i.e., single-limb) and bilateral (i.e., double-limb) heel rise was less than the full available plantarflexion range of motion measured in non-weightbearing, indicating that limited joint mobility did not limit heel rise performance. A higher percentage of people with DMPN were in midfoot and ankle dorsiflexion at peak unilateral heel rise compared to the non-DMPN controls, but the position and movement trajectories were restored with bilateral heel rise, a reduction in weightbearing load. Clinicians should consider appropriate resistance when treating midfoot and ankle movement dysfunctions since midfoot and ankle plantarflexion magnitude, position, and movement trajectory during unilateral heel rise were improved by reducing the amount of weightbearing. In Chapter 3, we determined the factors associated with midfoot angle at peak heel rise. We found that body mass index and maximum available midfoot plantarflexion range of motion were significant factors that accounted for 41.4% of variance of the midfoot angle at peak heel rise, while age and intrinsic foot muscle volume were not significant predictors. Weight and midfoot plantarflexion range of motion are potentially modifiable, which should be considered when health care professionals prescribe foot exercises to improve midfoot performance during weightbearing tasks in people with DMPN. In Chapter 4, we examined the relationship of heel rise performance to gait and characterized the trajectory of midfoot and ankle motion of unilateral heel rise and gait in people with DMPN. People with DMPN who failed to plantarflex the midfoot and ankle during heel rise had difficulty plantarflexing the midfoot and ankle during gait. Clinicians could use the heel rise task to identify midfoot and ankle dysfunction associated with gait in people with DMPN. The results of this dissertation support the use of plantarflexion tasks of unilateral, bilateral, and non-weightbearing to help identify midfoot and ankle movement dysfunction in people with DMPN. Weight management and increasing joint motion might improve midfoot and ankle movements during weightbearing tasks in people with DMPN. Furthermore, clinicians could also benefit by utilizing a simple heel rise task as a surrogate measure for evaluating midfoot and ankle movement dysfunction during gait

Clothing Selection Motivations and Challenges for Individuals with Alzheimer’s Disease: A Qualitative Exploration of Caregivers’ Viewpoints

The study explored current adaptive clothing items that are available for individuals with Alzheimer’s and explore their needs of effective clothing features from their caregiver’s viewpoints

Do I Know My Body Size? An Examination of College Students Involved in Fashion

Female college students often show their interests in fashion by volunteering to be a model for a senior fashion show. Also, their preferences of a certain clothing style reflect or be reflective of their fashion involvement. This raised following questions: What are the actual and perceived body sizes of the college students wanting to be a fashion model? Do they have any distinctive body image perception? Do they have a better understanding of their weight status and sizes? Thus, this study aims 1) to understand how college students involved in fashion perceive their body images and 2) to assess their body image discrepancies between the actual body sizes and perceived sizes

The Perception of Colors in Fashion: A Cohort Comparison of Baby Boomers and Generation Y

Colors of clothing affect psychology of consumers and the psychological effects and meaning of colors may vary by generation and culture. Thus, the purpose of this study is to investigate if baby boomers and generation Y have different interpretation of colors, and how their color perceptions are related to self-esteem, social motivation for fashion consumption and fashion involvement. A quasi-experimental quantitative survey method was used for this study. Respondents consisted of two generations including 50 baby boomers in age 65 or older and 50 generation Y individuals. Results showed that baby boomers, generally, prefer bright colors such as orange whereas generation Y prefers dark colors such as black. Also, self-esteem and fashion involvement are important factors of understanding their different color perceptions. The results from this study can be useful for apparel manufacturers and retailers to understand each generation\u27s different perceptions of clothing color

A Case Study of the 3D Design Process Applied for Customized Art Wears

This study was aimed to examine the efficiency of using 3D virtual design tools for customization process and creative design process by creating art wears with 3D design tools for individuals. The 3D Design for Art Wear Project has been conducted by collaborating in creating a wearable form from a digital print in art. For the project, art wears were designed with OptiTex 3D virtual design tool and 3D body scanner to create a seamless art wear from a genuine digital print art Superficial Outgrowth created by the artist. A customized wearable art with 3D design has been developed in this project. It is a remarkable that once a person has been scanned with a 3D body scanner, stored in the 3D system and designed in 3D, mapping the art without unnecessary cutting and no physical fitting process

A Sizing System for Big & Tall: Comparison between Proportional Sizing System and Linear Regression Model Approach

This study aimed to identify applicable sizing systems for big and tall men by examining current menswear sizing systems. A cluster analysis, a linear regression, and t-test with fit comparison plots were employed to test two dominant approaches of sizing systems: 1) a size chart based on proportions of a sampling distribution of means in normal distribution, which is the most common approach of sizing in the apparel industry; and 2) a size chart developed with a liner regression model. Body dimensions from a total of 301 big and tall men height over 71.5 inches and weight over 215 pounds were tested with the two size charts. Similar characteristics of big and tall were identified with the cluster analysis. While the sizing system with proportion displayed more deviations, the sizing system with a liner regression model predicted more of actual big and tall men’s body dimensions

Suppression of STAT3 and HIF-1 Alpha Mediates Anti-Angiogenic Activity of Betulinic Acid in Hypoxic PC-3 Prostate Cancer Cells

Background: Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) is a transcription factor that regulates various cellular processes such as cell survival, angiogenesis and proliferation. In the present study, we examined that betulinic acid (BA), a triterpene from the bark of white birch, had the inhibitory effects on hypoxia-mediated activation of STAT3 in androgen independent human prostate cancer PC-3 cells. Methodology/Principal Findings: BA inhibited the protein expression and the transcriptional activities of hypoxia-inducible factor-1a (HIF-1a) under hypoxic condition. Consistently, BA blocked hypoxia-induced phosphorylation, DNA binding activity and nuclear accumulation of STAT3. In addition, BA significantly reduced cellular and secreted levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), a critical angiogenic factor and a target gene of STAT3 induced under hypoxia. Furthermore, BA prevented in vitro capillary tube formation in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) maintained in conditioned medium of hypoxic PC-3 cells, implying anti-angiogenic activity of BA under hypoxic condition. Of note, chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChiP) assay revealed that BA inhibited binding of HIF-1a and STAT3 to VEGF promoter. Furthermore, silencing STAT3 using siRNA transfection effectively enhanced the reduced VEGF production induced by BA treatment under hypoxia. Conclusions/Significance: Taken together, our results suggest that BA has anti-angiogenic activity by disturbing th