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Lots of people believe that colours create emotions in people. I know I believe it. Many years ago as an undergrad psychology student I used to submit my assignments in different coloured manilla folders depending on the content. I would use blue folders if I thought I had done a great job in terms of research and well considered argument and I wanted the Professor to take their time reading it. I used to use red folders if I knew the material looked good on the surface but wouldn’t stand up to deeper scrutiny (wanting the Professor to mark on first impressions).

There are reams of articles written and marketing materials all chosen to tap into the psychology of colour – but where is the scientific proof behind the beliefs?

New Scientist recently reviewed some scientific studies on the use of red and blue and the results are fascinating. The studies were done using taekwondo bouts and had experienced referees score the bouts shown on video. The only difference was the colour of the clothing. In some one combatants was wearing blue and the other red – and then to another sample the clothing colours were swapped. The results  – if the bouts were not close the colours had no impact – yet in close bouts the person wearing red scored on average 13% more points than when they were wearing blue.

Scientists also studied the outcomes in the Athens Olympics in boxing, taekwondo, Graeco-Roman wrestling and freestyle wrestling. Those wearing red won 55% of the time and 62% of the time if the bout was close.

Only for individual sports you say? Well another scientist studied 56 seasons of British Soccer – and those teams whose first choice kit was red finished higher in the league and won more home games than any other colours. This study was replicated in the Euro soccer league.

Fantastic. Now you know which way to bet in footie tipping competitions, so let’s all go and put red in our marketing. Well hold your horses – it is not quite that simple.

In humans red is associated with anger and testosterone. People flush red with anger (and desire).  Tests show that we believe red is a dominant colour and more likely to win physical competitions than say white or blue.

In some other very stylish experiments, volunteers were asked to take a 5 minute IQ test. They were assigned a bogus participant number which was written in either red pen or black pen on the top of their forms. People who had their numbers written in red pen scored significantly lower that those in black.  They then gave students different coloured folders and asked them for their preferred level of difficulty for an IQ test. Students given red folders chose easier tests.

Even viewing red for just a few seconds can make people more timid. Students were told they were going to be taking either a spelling test or an analogies test and to look inside a folder to see which one. The word “analogies” or “spelling” was written on a red or green background. They were then sent to an adjacent lab to take the test, where the sign said “Please knock”. Students who had seen the red background knocked fewer times and more quietly than those given green.

More tests have shown that red on computer screens makes people physically lean away from the screen (not great it your website is primarily red in colour).

But red isn’t all bad. Red improves the results on detail oriented tasks, while blue enhances the results of creative tasks. Women are more likely to be asked for a date (and have more money spent on them in that date) if they wear red. (I have images of scientists going “pick me pick me” to run some of these studies).

So, what is being found is red is context specific. If you want to win at a physical event wear red. If you want to win the dating war – wear red.  If you are in other contexts – you may want to play with other colours rather than red to ensure you don’t give off an aggressive vibe for your product or business. Perhaps in my early days as an undergrad student I wasn’t far off the mark with my folder colours.

And to those who believe that this is all hooey  and you can control your response – there are other studies that show seeing the colour triggers release of chemicals in the body, and fires off neurons in the brain – even before you are consciously making any decisions.Your body decides even before you do!

So … time to take another look at the colours around you and work out the impact they may be having on your behaviour.

Until next time

Ingrid Cliff

We put your business into words

Heart Harmony – Freelance Writer