The Psychology of Color

On a September morning, the fifth year I taught school, I entered the office the morning of “picture” day, got the mail and notices out of my “cubby” and said hello to any and all gathered around the counter.  Absolutely nothing new or strange about that.  So why were the secretary and several teachers looking at me and laughing?  No need to wonder; they couldn’t wait to share the source of their mirth.  They had been looking through the school album of photos and someone had pointed out that I was wearing the same dress for my school photo year after year.  Yes, it was the same outfit I was wearing that day.

            I loved that dress.  It was two tone brown with a drop waist and cute little belt around the hips.  I wore it for years, but I didn’t wear it for another picture day.  I also noticed, when I went home that night, that almost every garment in my closet was some shade of brown.  Even the whites I chose were creamy white.  I did have some red, but it was a brick red, not candy apple.  There was not a single garment in blue, green or purple. 

            People have favorite colors for many different reasons.  Or aversions to certain colors, also for specific reasons.  Studies show that, excepting small cultural biases, the emotional reaction to color is remarkably similar throughout the world.  Even the exceptions to this rule are notable in their consistency.  For example, no matter which group of people you test, red is the only color that is associated with both love and anger.  Freud would have a field day with that.  

            And about reds, most men consider red to be a sexually attractive color for women.  Women, on the other hand, don’t categorize any particular color as sexually attractive on men.  [I think we are usually happy just to see them wearing something clean and without a company logo.] 

            But the fact that the emotional response which colors receive around the world is similar and predictable speaks to our common ancestry.  This is deep and subtle hard wiring. 

            In drug studies, a placebo that is colored red or orange is more likely to be described as a stimulant.  The same placebo colored blue or green will act as a depressant.  A room painted in cool colors will invariably need a higher thermostat setting than one painted in warm colors.  These are psychological differences, not physical realities.  In a similar way, most adults claim blue is their favorite color, followed by green.  Are these reactions to the natural environments of a deep ancestral past? 

            Some color/emotion responses are clearly cultural in nature.  In Asia, white is a color for mourning.  No bride would wear a white gown.  Red is the preferred color for brides because it represents luck (fertility?).  It would be a rare bride who would choose black for a bridal gown in this country, as we see it as a color for mourning.  [Notwithstanding the thankfully passe fashion from the 90’s of weddings with a black/white color scheme.  Evidently the bride and groom did not know that black and white are the colors of perpetual virginity.  Hardly a harbinger of good fortune for the wedding night.]

            A favorite color is probably a transient and situation specific term.  Children show a preference for yellow that does not follow them into their adulthood.  I like some colors on my back, but not in my décor.  But it is comforting to know that even in an unsettled and divisive world, evidence exists that we are, in this and many other ways, more alike than we are different. 

            Keep the faith.