# Why are some people so insistent on wearing a hat? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 10, 2019, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600 "2019-10-10T19:02:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/1 "2019-10-10T19:02:01Z")
I know some people who are absolutely inseparable from their hats, or having something cover their head. There was this kid who always had a hood on his head and would reflexively yank it back on his head anytime his head was exposed (there was nothing wrong with his head or hair, as far as I can tell.) Another guy always wears a baseball cap - in years, I’ve only seen him without a cap for a few seconds. There are other such people as well. Are they afraid of having their head exposed? Don’t like the sight of their bare head? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/2 "2019-10-10T19:06:41Z")
If it’s an adult male, my assumption (unless demonstrated otherwise) is that he’s losing his hair (or has lost it already), and doesn’t want people to see this. It’s not uncommon at all for guys who are suffering from hair loss to be insecure about this, and to try to cover it up, either with a hat, a toupee (less common these days), or even a clearly-unnatural-looking combover (not naming any names here for political reasons 😃 ). ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/3 "2019-10-10T19:09:42Z")
I like to wear a hat. It keeps the sun of my head in summer and keeps my head warm in winter. I did this long before I began losing my hair. I also have never had a good hair day, so I don’t have to worry about looking like Doc Brown when I have a hat on. ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/4 "2019-10-10T19:10:48Z")
I’m a hat person. I rarely go out in public without a hat unless I’m wearing a suit maybe 4 times a year. I do it because it keeps the sun out of my eyes and I don’t have to worry about combing my hair or it looking presentable. Of course i take if off if I start getting sweaty or its generally bugging me and sometimes I run out of the house and forget to grab one. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/5 "2019-10-10T19:14:09Z")
I am effectively\* bald on top, and I wear a hat when outdoors for the very practical reason that I do not want to be _sunburned_ on top. - There are hairs there, but when you describe hair in the plural, it is a sign that there isn’t very much of it. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/6 "2019-10-10T19:21:26Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > I like to wear a hat. It keeps the sun of my head in summer and keeps my head warm in winter. I did this long before I began losing my hair. I also have never had a good hair day, so I don’t have to worry about looking like Doc Brown when I have a hat on. This. A hat is essential if you live in a desert like I do. It keeps the sun off your bare head, and a baseball cap will shield your eyes from the sun. You can also show devotion for your favorite team (Go D’Backs!). ---
**Author:** ![pool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pool/32/4152_2.png) [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/7 "2019-10-10T19:22:00Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > If it’s an adult male, my assumption (unless demonstrated otherwise) is that he’s losing his hair (or has lost it already), and doesn’t want people to see this. > > It’s not uncommon at all for guys who are suffering from hair loss to be insecure about this, and to try to cover it up, either with a hat, a toupee (less common these days), or even a clearly-unnatural-looking combover (not naming any names here for political reasons 😃 ). Funny you should say that I have a relative that always wears hats, I never thought much of it and then he got arrested and in his mugshot I saw that he had lost a ton of hair and suddenly it all made sense. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/8 "2019-10-10T19:24:00Z")
I wouldn’t say I was compulsive about it, but hats are cool. Not caps, hats. I still have almost all my hair, so it’s not that. I just like them. Plus, mine are lined with tin foil to keep out the mind control rays. Sure, people laugh now - but when the aliens land and I am the only one left to lead the plucky band of survivors and we defeat the hordes and I am the only male left to repopulate the earth with Mary Jane Krovatnik who told me in high school that she wouldn’t go out with me if I was the last man on earth, we shall see who laughs then. Regards, Shodan - Plucky but Stylish Survivor ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/9 "2019-10-10T19:25:52Z")
OK thanks, but I am wondering about people who insistently wear hats even when 1) they have no hair loss and 2) it’s not particularly hot or sunny. Do they just feel psychologically vulnerable if their head is uncovered? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/10 "2019-10-10T19:26:58Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > OK thanks, but I am wondering about people who insistently wear hats even when 1) they have no hair loss and 2) it’s not particularly hot or sunny. Do they just feel psychologically vulnerable if their head is uncovered? Yeah, and what about all those people who are so insistent on wearing clothes and shoes? What’s the deal with them? ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/11 "2019-10-10T19:28:05Z")
My father was killed in a tragic accident when, because he was hatless, the sun got in his eyes and he drove into a canyon. I can still see the fireball, smell the burning flesh and hear his screams of agony. Wearing a hat dulls the pain and makes me feel safe. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/12 "2019-10-10T19:36:57Z")
I once had a coworker who always wore a baseball hat. After three years, one day he got into a fight and his hat was knocked off. Until then, nobody knew he was bald. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/13 "2019-10-10T19:37:56Z")
Also, and I really should have included this in my earlier post: [“Yo, we got some hats now, muh-fuckers.”](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106880/reference) ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/14 "2019-10-10T19:42:49Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Are they afraid of having their head exposed? Don’t like the sight of their bare head? When I had hair it was in the hopes my hair would fall out; everyone told me it would. It didn’t until my doctor put me on a particular combination of meds and then it went big-time! Since then its more from force of habit and hating sun block on my scalp. And to be honest ----- I had hair so thick and curly ------ I just hated it. Every time I pulled my helmet off it looked like I was going for a fro. And as for the thick; I could put a wrench behind my ear the way some people did pencils. Wish I had an old picture I could post. To get it any kind of straight-ish I had to let it go down past my shoulderblades. Hats were just easier than all the care it would have taken. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/15 "2019-10-10T19:48:23Z")
I’ve always hated wearing hats, which was kind of a problem in the military and in the construction game. I do wear a ventilated hat in direct sun, as I take some meds that don’t play well with sunlight, and because cancer. I also wear an oilskin hat when it rains, as I hate hoods and umbrellas with a seething passion. I’ve been told that I look really good in a hat, but wearing one all the time would drive me nuts. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/16 "2019-10-10T19:50:37Z")
I always wear a hat outdoors. It keeps my head warm in winter, and keeps me from getting sunburned in summer. Besides, hats are cool. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/17 "2019-10-10T19:57:41Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > This. A hat is essential if you live in a desert like I do. It keeps the sun off your bare head, and a baseball cap will shield your eyes from the sun. You can also show devotion for your favorite team (Go D’Backs!). I should note that, in my earlier post, I was making the assumption that the “always wearing a hat” sort of person that the OP mentioned is _always_ wearing a hat, including indoors, at night, etc. My hair is seriously thinning on top (and has been since I was in my late 20s), and so, if I’m going to be outside in the sun, I wear a hat, so for those of you who do the same, I heartily approve. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/18 "2019-10-10T20:12:02Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > OK thanks, but I am wondering about people who insistently wear hats even when 1) they have no hair loss and 2) it’s not particularly hot or sunny. Do they just feel psychologically vulnerable if their head is uncovered? Again, I’ve got no hair loss and I wear a hat because i don’t want to deal with making my hair look good. I don’t wear it in bed or anything silly like that but if I’m going to meet someone and I give even. A slight fuck about what they think I’ll throw on a hat. This includes if you come to my house for dinner or I’m running to the grocery store. Since I put my hat on when my hair is still wet in the morning I’ve had people tell me that my hair looks fine, if I end up take off my hat for some reason, apparently, it looks like I slicked it back and blow dried it. I’m not wearing a hat this morning because I’ve been laying tile and I don’t feel vulnerable but I’m about to run out to a parent teacher conference so I’ll throw on a hat on my way out the door. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/19 "2019-10-10T20:26:04Z")
Hats are an essential part of a gentleman’s wardrobe. You may as well ask why some people always wear a tie. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600/20 "2019-10-10T20:46:50Z")
If I am wearing a hat indoors, I’m probably not going to want to take it off. Either I know my hair is a mess (which is why I have it covered) or I am afraid it will look a mess because of the hat itself. I get major hat hair, which is why I always stop by the ladies room with a comb in tow when I come to work wearing a hat (which I do when it is hot and sunny). Sent from my moto x4 using Tapatalk [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-so-insistent-on-wearing-a-hat/841600.md?page=2)