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More psychology than game theory.
Suits used to be very exclusive and custom-tailored only. So wearing one was a sign of wealth, success and displayed confidence. This evoked feelings of respect, reliability and by extension trust.
Because it worked so well in commanding "prepaid" respect and trust, it became a tool for professionals who could afford it. With more demand came the cheaper, off-the-rack suits and it lost some of its power over time, but certainly not all.
Among the upper levels of suitwearery (yes, I made that up) these days, you're expected to instantly spot if someone is wearing tailor-made with bonus points if you can name the tailor. Same goes for designer ties obv.
You wouldn't want to be seen as an off-the-rack wearer after all.
Suits used to be very exclusive and custom-tailored only
I dunno about this really. If you look at old pictures of NYC and other cities you see almost all men wearing suits. I also have a distrust of suits but Ithink this is mostly the influence of the 60s distrust of authority figures that carried over into the decades that followed. That coupled with my blue-collar background and influence of my father.
Today I am not sure my or your logic holds as we see less and less influence peddlers wearing suits. They tend to also be in lower production media and my trust mechanisms have adapted a lot. You even see low production value adds on TV copying the style of Tiktok.
We are constantly being manipulated so my suit distrust is too simple really.
If you look at old pictures of NYC and other cities you see almost all men wearing suits.
With regards to this: I'm pretty sure it started in courts and some British (I think?) guy named Beau Brummell had some style(s) tailored that made it more mainstream over time.
Yeah, you are probably right. My point is more of the way they are viewed over time. I think for the most part the disdain for suits in modern times comes from the counter cultural movements of the 60s. Virtually no one is doing research on their origins.
For people like me there also could be a hold over from the 80's yuppies that explains some of my feelings. Also being required to wear ties to church every week is the practical reason I hate wearing one now.
As I get older this fades. In my youth I hated pretense and dressing up for appearances or respect. Now I get that whatever you do is a signal. Wearing jeans, a hoodie, a t-shirt is all sending a message about what you want to project. We can't help but participate in symbolism. I used to foolishly think I was rejecting it but I think that was wrong now. I was just projecting a different image. Maybe it was truthful or maybe not. Point is, clothes are easy to change and are a signal but one that can be used to manipulate.
Not sure we'd have a better world if lawyers and politicians wore casual clothes. Probably is just us being manipulated.
I'm right there with you
Do you know the game theory for why that is?