Dressing for Desire: An Exploratory Mixed-Methods Pilot Study on Clothing, LGBTQ+ and heteronormative Identities in Spanish and Mexican students

This exploratory mixed-methods pilot study examines how university students in Spain and Mexico use clothing as a tool for romantic self-presentation, revealing how gender and sexual orientation influence fashion choices. Drawing from symbolic interactionism, cultural studies, and queer theory, the research highlights how LGBTQ+ and heterosexual youth navigate normativity, desire, and identity through dress. Using visual ranking tasks and open-ended responses, the study identifies two main aesthetic tendencies: normative/traditional styles and expressive/alternative fashion. Bisexual and sexually diverse participants displayed more variability and resistance to normative codes, particularly in Oaxaca, where regional conservatism increases the stakes of gender expression. Men identifying as sexually diverse preferred casual, non-traditional styles, rejecting formal clothing as symbols of hegemonic masculinity. Meanwhile, heterosexual participants aimed for social adequacy and comfort. Clothing thus emerges not merely as decoration, but as a space of negotiation—between visibility and safety, belonging and dissent. Findings underline fashion’s political and affective dimension in dating contexts, especially for youth constructing their identities in varying sociocultural terrains.