The language of fashion as a communicational construction of identities in contemporary Ecuador

Abstract

This article analyzes fashion language in Ecuador not as an object of consumption, but as a form of cultural communication through which identities are constructed and expressed today. The research starts from a central question: how are media messages, global trends, and new consumption habits reshaping the meaning that citizens give to the clothes they wear? To explore this link, the focus was placed on the symbolic value of national clothing and its weight in the country's identity. A mixed, non-experimental, cross-sectional methodology was applied, which allowed for a broad overview of the phenomenon. The study gathered the opinions of 303 people, aged 20 to 50, through surveys, and delved deeper into the views of key players in the sector through qualitative interviews. This cross-referencing of data made it possible to contrast statistical metrics with stories and experiences about clothing in the local context. The results confirm that, although there is consensus on fashion's ability to project who we are, this interpretation is neither linear nor homogeneous. The way we decode clothing is closely tied to how close consumers feel to their roots and to the strong pressure of social media, which today serves as the main aesthetic reference point. There is a constant mix of symbols of heritage and global trends, giving rise to fluid and, at times, contradictory identities. In short, Ecuadorian fashion has an undeniable identity, but its real impact is subject to a permanent tension between tradition, the digital environment, and consumer logic, where the sense of belonging is negotiated at every moment.