Psychology of Color

There a variety of studies on how color can impact us psychologically.

We all have our favorite colors that we tend to gravity towards, but did you know that studies have shown that color can impact us emotionally. A study by Okamura Yasuto did a study on the influence of having the color red versus white as the background color behind a negative image, and how it impacts a person’s perception of that image. He divided the participants into two groups, one viewing negative images with a white background and another viewing negative images with a red background. The study’s results were consistent with previous studies by demonstrating that participants who viewed the negative image with the red background were more affected by what they saw than the participants who viewed the same images with the white background. 

Color psychology is the study of hues as a determining factor of human behavior.

This means that different colors not only can impact us emotionally, but can also impact our choices in clothes, paint, furniture, cars, etc. Color can impact our mood, feelings, and behaviors. It can also impact the choices we make when making a purchase, particularly with fashion and interior designs. Color is a powerful tool for designers, artists, and marketing companies. Color can impact how a person perceives a product, advertisement, or message. Color is even used to identify roles within an organization, such as sports. Most all referees wear black and white, which kind goes along with saying there are no gray areas in winning versus losing. There are even different color light therapies that impact different illnesses or discomforts. 

Various colors also have “known” meanings when it comes to clothing. White is considered clean and fresh, black is consider powerful, red is consider bold, yellow is considered cheerful, and blue is often considered a safe color, which may explain why there are many varieties of “blue” jeans on the market today. Designers even advertise color every year. This year’s color is Pantone Classic Blue 19-4052. This color symbolizes safety from chaos or uncertainty. It’s the go to safe color, aka blue jeans, when you just don’t know what to wear. Color means a lot to us, whether we realize it or not. 

When you look at a billboard, advertisement, or the latest fashion design, look at the use of colors. Ask yourself, what is appealing or appalling about what you are looking at? Also, look at ads in magazines or on TV, what colors do you see and does it impact the message? Look around your home or at your clothes, what colors do you seem to gravitate towards. Also, take notice that if green is your favorite color, but you have blue on the wall, why did you choose that color? 

https://www.verywellmind.com/color-psychology-2795824

Okamura, Yasuto. (2017). The Influence of the Background Color “Red” on the Appraisal of Pictures. International Journal of Psychology and Educational Studies. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1213593.pdf

The Pantone 2020 Color of the Year is Calm, Enduring Refuge. https://theblog.adobe.com/pantone-color-of-the-year-2020/

Written by: Rachelle Sanders

Photo Reference: Photo by Kaboompics .com from Pexels