TITLE:
Measuring Saudi Mothers’ Awareness of Sustainable Children’s Clothing
AUTHORS:
Hanan Samir Berry, Rowan Khaled Ismail, Sarah Eid Al-Daadi, Shahid Ibrahim Omar Badr, Yasmine Omar Mesbah, Maha Abdullah Dabbagh
KEYWORDS:
Sustainability, Children’s Clothing, Mothers’ Awareness, Eco-Clothing, Recycling
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Social Sciences,
Vol.8 No.11,
November
27,
2020
ABSTRACT: A mother begins to care about her baby once she learns about her pregnancy. She becomes even more concerned about her baby after delivery, and, therefore, starts to scrutinize everything that is of interest to the baby, including the selection of adequate clothing that is not harmful to sensitive skin. Given the importance of providing comfortable and healthy clothing to our children, it was necessary to focus on the type of fabrics from which children’s dresses are made. Also there has been a need to understand the best characteristics and specifications of fabrics, as sustainable fibers that are made from cotton are commonly preferred over synthetic fibers which are considered unsuitable for children due to the sensitivity of their skin. With the beginning of the 21st century, fast fashion has become a source of growth, and production of clothing doubled dramatically. Estimates indicate that consumers are turning to cheaper clothes which are usually discarded after a short time, while ignoring sustainable fabrics and quality of clothing, thus harming the children’s skin. Based on this fact, this research seeks to examine Saudi mothers’ awareness of sustainable fabrics, their interest in purchasing eco-friendly children’s clothing as well as their purchasing preferences of children clothing. This paper also seeks to raise awareness among mothers on the importance of choosing sustainable fabrics for children’s clothing, guide mothers to opt for quality of fabrics over designs, encourage designers to create designs for children’s clothing using eco-friendly fabrics, and encourage merchants to use and market eco-friendly fabrics in order to reduce the environmental pollution, in line with the Saudi Vision 2030.