Color psychology

[5] The field of color psychology applies to many other domains such as medical therapy, sports, hospital settings, and even in game design.

The ancient Egyptians documented color "cures" using painted rooms or sunlight shining through crystals as therapy.

[7] In his book, von Goethe describes the color yellow as "serene" and blue as a mixture of "excitement and repose".

[8] In 1942, Kurt Goldstein, a German neurologist, conducted a series of experiments on various participants to determine the effects of color on motor function.

In one experiment, Goldstein claims that a woman suffering from a cerebral disease was prone to frequently falling over and that wearing red significantly increased this.

Multiple researchers propose that one factor in the evolution of primate trichromatic color vision is to allow for better perception of the emotions or condition of others that can prove highly useful for complex social interaction.

For example, in food stores, bread is normally sold in packaging decorated with or tinted with golden or brown tones to promote the idea of home-baked and oven-freshness.

[24] A railroad company in Japan installed blue lighting at its stations in October 2009 in an effort to reduce the number of rail suicide attempts,[25] although the effect of this technique has been questioned.

[26] In 2000, the city of Glasgow installed blue street lighting in certain neighborhoods and subsequently reported the anecdotal finding of reduced crime in these areas.

[33] A concept proposed by Dutton in evolutionary aesthetics is that blue and green may reflect a preference for certain habitats that were beneficial in an "ancestral environment".

The physiological and emotional effect of color in each person is influenced by several factors such as past experiences, culture, religion, natural environment, gender, ethnicity, and nationality.

Some companies such as Victoria's Secret and H&R Block used color to change their corporate image and create a new brand personality for a specific target audience.

Functional (F): fulfills a need or solves a problem [43] Sensory-Social (S): conveys attitudes, status, or social approval [43] In map design, additional color meanings are commonly employed to create intuitive map symbols, due to the natural colors of common geographic features.

For example, cosmetics brands produce a rainbow of colors for eye shadow and nail polish, to appeal to every type of client.

In addition to fancy names being preferred for their aural appeal, they may contribute to the product they represent being liked more, and, therefore affecting sales.

Participants were asked to imagine buying sweatshirts and were provided with a variety of color name options, some typical, some atypical.

The results showed that study subjects picked packages based on colors that attracted their voluntary and involuntary attention.

[63] Chromotherapy is a treatment method adapted from ancient color-based practices that uses wavelengths in the visual spectrum (colors we can see) to treat different conditions.

[64] This therapy has been researched to treat multiple physiological and psychiatric conditions, such as seasonal affective disorder (SAD), age-related cognitive decline, depression, and hypertension among others.

[74] Research has looked at the preference of young children, ages 7 months to 5 years, for small objects in different colors.

Busy patterns and strong colors in an infant's room is thought to contribute to hyperactivity, lack of sleep, and restlessness.

When deciding on brand and product logos, companies should take into account their target consumer, since cultural differences exist.

[12] For instance, one study examined color relationships with emotion with participants in Germany, Mexico, Poland, Russia, and the United States; finding that red was associated with anger and viewed as strong and active.

More anecdotal is the historical dominance of the domestic honors by red-wearing teams such AFC Ajax, FC Bayern Munich, Liverpool F.C., and Manchester United F.C.

The results of the study indicated that competitors who wore red and black-colored trunks appeared stronger, more aggressive, and more dominant to the referee observing the match.

In 1914, a surgeon in a San Francisco hospital, Harry Sherman, adopted green, "the complementary colour to hemoglobin" to avoid dazzle.

At around the same time, architect William Ludlow began to advocate pale pastel blues and greens in hospitals for therapeutic purposes and advising that "white is negative".

Primate studies have found that some species evaluate rivals and possible mates depending on red color characteristics.

Another study on experienced players of first-person shooter games found that those assigned to wear red uniforms instead of blue won 55% of the matches.

Feelings of joy and sadness were strongly associated with the brightness, value, saturation, chroma and lightness of the game being played.