ABSTRACT
In this chapter we explore some of the tensions and the power struggles we experienced when, as adult researchers, we interviewed young women. We begin by providing a brief analysis of eighteen in-depth interviews with young women aged between twelve and sixteen from Bristol and Cardiff.1
These young women were from homes with average to low incomes, and all of them volunteered to be interviewed in their own schools. Initially we set out to explore young women’s consumption practices and the ways in which they use consumer products and shopping practices (such as trying on clothes with their friends) to construct identities. We did not set out explicitly to focus on the use of clothing to signal mature sexual identities. However, we soon began to hear a whisper through the data where girls hinted at the sexual significance of particular types of clothing. We began to feel that clothing might be one of the few opportunities for young women to explore and publicly present their sexuality.
