Do clothes really "make the man"? In certain instances, yes, they do. When you wear a uniform to play a certain role, that uniform evokes power over others. People create impressions or even illusions of power with what they wear. When you wear the right clothes for the situation, you can persuade without even speaking.

Think of what a police uniform says; imagine a police officer trying to clear a urban riot in street clothes. The officer in uniform will get immediate attention because we respond and respect uniforms. Even clergy who wear their robes command more respect and are able to persuade and influence with higher efficiency than they can when sporting street clothes. We see a doctor in a white coat and automatically assume he is a medical professional who knows exactly what to prescribe. When a businessperson shows up in a $1,500 suit and polished shoes, we automatically assume his is in charge or is the decision maker. We know people treat us differently based on how we dress.

In one experiment, a man would stop pedestrians in New York City. The experimenter either had them pick up paper bags, move from where they were standing, or requested they give money to a perfect stranger. The experimenter would point to another man nearly fifty feet away, telling them the man had over parked and didn't have any change to pay the meter. He would then tell them to go give the man the necessary change. Researchers watched to see how many people complied when the experimenter was dressed in normal street clothes versus when he was dressed as a security guard.

After giving the command, the experimenter would turn a corner so he was out of the pedestrian's sight. Incredibly, almost all of the pedestrians obeyed when he was dressed in uniform, even after he was gone! When he was dressed in street clothes, less than half of the pedestrians complied with his request. In another study, Lawrence and Watson found that individuals asking for contributions to law enforcement and healthcare campaigns gathered more donations when wearing sheriffs' and nurses' uniforms than when they just dressed normally.