PSYCHOPHYSICAL RESPONSES TO TEXTILE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES: A NEURO-MECHANISTIC APPROACH TO FABRIC-HUMAN INTERACTION

This manuscript establishes a comprehensive and empirically grounded framework for the Psychophysics of Style, creating a transdisciplinary bridge between the material engineering of textiles and the neurobiology of human cognition. Situated within the contemporary crisis of the attention economy and the increasing dematerialization of the self into digital constructs, this research posits that the act of dressing is not merely a sociocultural signaling mechanism but a fundamental psychophysical interface that regulates emotional stability, cognitive processing, and ontological coherence. We argue that the materiality of clothing serves as critical ontological ballast, counteracting the fragmentation of the digital age through quantifiable mechanical inputs. By synthesizing Kansei Engineering and advanced tactile neurobiology, this approach moves from the metaphorical to the measurable. We incorporate verified empirical data, including the identification of a precise texture recognition threshold of 45.4µm that demarcates the transition from passive to active neural processing. Furthermore, the study demonstrates that fabric volume modulates Electroencephalography (EEG) Alpha bands, validating that textile substantivity impacts cognitive orientation. Such biological findings were corroborated with Life Cycle Assessments to prove the validity of natural fibers over synthetic materials in this case. Therefore, these results set out the basis of Sustainable Enclothed Cognition with a proposition that added mechanical strength and moral mass of natural textiles are a sufficient counterpoint in this way to sustain human awareness in such a fluid digital culture.