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The purpose of this study is to develop understanding of the extended self-theory by focusing on the influence of other people in identity constructions as experienced in collectivist Eastern contexts. It specifically addresses the impact of being treated as an extended self on Arab-Muslim women’s identity constructions.

This study uses a qualitative research approach consisting of 23 in-depth semi-structured interviews. Nonprobability, purposive sampling is followed as the study targets Kuwaiti women who identify as former hijab/veil wearers. Sample diversity is attained in terms of Kuwaiti women’s demographical characteristics, including their age range, marital status and social class.

The findings of this study reveal paradoxes of experiencing the collective extended self through familial pressure to (un)veil and the strategies used by women to reject engaging with the collective extended self, including contextualizing, substituting and sexualizing the veil.

Existing studies related to the notion of the extended self are primarily conducted in Western contexts, and as such, are oriented toward personal accountability related to identity constructions. To complement this perspective and address the call for research on the extended self in collectivist societies, this study highlights the importance of recognizing the role of other people in influencing identity constructions in Eastern contexts.

The purpose of this paper is to explore how Muslim men in Kuwait negotiate their luxury fashion consumption (considered a feminized practice in Kuwait) without compromising their masculine identity.

The data were collected through 108 qualitative questionnaires and two unstructured in-depth interviews. Non-participant observations and informal conversations took place as part of an ongoing ethnographic study on luxury fashion consumption in Kuwait.

Within the feminized space of fashion, accessories (such as shoes, wallets, watches, sunglasses, etc.) seem to allow Muslim men an androgynous space (consumer constructions of gendered spaces to be equally masculine and feminine) to be fashionable yet maintain a masculine identity.

Further research may explore the negotiation of androgyny among men who consume luxury fashion clothing or conspicuously feminized fashion (such as jewellery and handbags) in highly gendered societies. Limitations include reliance on questionnaire data (lacks depth insights) and narrow consumer (Muslim men in Kuwait).

Marketers of luxury fashion brands in Kuwait should focus on fashion accessories when targeting males. Advertising needs to shift gender perceptions of traditionally feminine fashion (such as handbags or jewellery) towards androgyny to attract male consumers. Religiosity of consumers is an important segmentation basis, and Muslim men who are less religious may be more open towards fashion consumption.

This research proposes the notion of androgynous spaces, contributing to gender within marketing theory and practice.