Female Muslim students’ dress practices in a South African campus context

Abstract

Female Muslim students in South Africa follow varied dress practices. While some individuals tend to wear traditional Islamic garments, others wear typical Western garments. These differences in dress can be attributed to the acculturation process. The campus environment is a multicultural context. Female Muslim students are surrounded by a variety of values, identities and dress practices. The study aimed to explore and describe the acculturation strategies female Muslim students (attending a university in Pretoria) follow in terms of their dress practices. A cultural perspective served as the theoretical framework. An exploratory survey research design was followed. Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire. A total of 200 questionnaires were completed by female Muslim students, between 17 and 25 years of age, enrolled at the University of Pretoria (n=200). The results of the study revealed that participants could not be divided into three groups according to the different acculturation strategies, but rather into two groups based on less modest and more modest dress practices.