Introduction

The color theory is credited to Sir. Isaac Newton who discovered that passing pure white light via a prism separates the light into many visible colors. Newton also found that each of the colors was made of a single wavelength which could not be divided further into more colors. Other experiments have since proven that it is possible to form different colors by combining colors. For instance, red mixed with yellow creates orange with other colors such as green and magenta canceling each other out to form white light.  Given the commonness of color, one would expect the psychology of color to be a well-developed field of study. However, researchers Andrew Elliot and Markus Maier have surprisingly noted that there is very little theoretical and empirical work carried out on the influence of color on the psychological functioning of a human being.  The work done on the issue of color psychology has mostly been driven by practical concern and not scientific curiosity. However, in spite of the lack of literature on this subject matter, the concept of color and psychology has become a hot topic issue in the fields of marketing, art, design and many other areas. Most of the evidence in this emerging area of color and psychology is circumstantial at best. However, some researchers have made some crucial discoveries and observations to the effect that the psychology of color has an impact on moods, feelings, and behaviors. The feelings an individual has towards color are more often deeply personal and rooted in the individual’s own experiences and culture. For instance, an example of the effect of religion on an individual’s feeling about color is the white is used in many Western countries as a symbol of innocence and purity, while many countries in the East associate the color white with mourning and sadness. This paper seeks to prove that bright colors will bring out happier reactions in people while dark colors are responsible for bringing out more moody reactions.

Background

Joham Wolfgang von Goethe was one of the first scholars to publish his book ‘Theory of Colors’, which was an elaboration on the psychology of colors, which was refuted adamantly by multiple scholars. In spite the lack of existing evidence to back the claim that color affects emotions and mood a plethora of scholars from various disciplines have made the argument that colors do indeed affect people’s mood, emotions, and behavior. Even though science does not back it up, artists and interior designers have always prescribed to the school of thought that color has dramatic effects on the moods and feelings of people. Color is a powerful tool of communication, which could be used to influence mood signal action and even go as far as impacting a physiological reaction from individuals. Researchers have been known to associate certain colors with increase metabolism, blood pressure and strain of the eyes. One thing that scholars in the field of the psychology of colors have agreed upon is that the perception of colors is somehow subjective with same colors carrying universal meanings. For instance, colors on the red side of the spectrum such as red, orange and yellow are also known as warm colors evoke warm emotions ranging from the feeling of warmth and comfort to the sense of anger and hostility. Colors on the blue side of the spectrum also known as cool colors include green, blue and purple. These colors tend to inspire calmness but can also evoke feelings of sadness and indifference.

Some ancient civilizations such as the Chinese and the Egyptians used colors to heal their sick; practice is also known as chromotherapy. Chromotherapy also goes by the names of light therapy and colorology is still a practice in alternative and holistic treatments. In the ancient colorology treatments, red stimulated the body and mind to increase the circulation; yellow was used in the stimulation of nerves and body purification. The color orange encouraged healing of the lungs and increased the levels of energy; blue was thought to help in soothing illness and treatment of pain, while various shades of indigo were thought to alleviate problems of the skin. However, modern psychologists have a more skeptic view of color therapy by pointing out the gross exaggeration of the supposed effects that color has.

Nevertheless, they agree with the fact that different cultures have different meanings of color. Some research demonstrates the alteration of moods and emotions due to color are only temporary. The feeling of calmness inspired by a blue room soon dissipates from the individuals. To ascertain that indeed bright colors inspire better moods as opposed to dark colors which inspire dark and gloomy moods a study was conducted among college students.

Experimental Design

The independent variable, in this case, is the colors in the students’ union center while the dependent variable is the mood/emotions of the respondents. The students’ union complex within the University campus is the location chosen for this particular research. The campus is 5Km from the city center with over 5000 students enrolled and 60% of the residing within the campus. The student union is placed around the main courtyard which is a myriad of activities from the students such as dining and social activities. The students’ union complex was selected for this research as it is painted with a multitude of colors. The union complex has various sections on the inside decorated with different colors, and it is the same as the outside where separate entrances and viewpoints of the complex. The Lakeview cafeteria within the complex was painted with warm colors yellow, orange and red. A large surface area of the Lakeview cafeteria was painted white. The Break Point and Munch More had fewer warmer colors which were substituted by colorful artwork. The Palm Inn section of the complex had nice and inviting colors on the walls on the furniture. There was the adornment of the walls with glass and graffiti-like artwork. There were various shades of green on the shelves and gray on the walls with a strip of green. The dark room for picture development and the area leading up to it was painted black.  Students visited the field of study, the union complex, made observations and completed assessments. Later questionnaires were generated to make questions as simple and straightforward as possible, pointing them in the direction of the aim of the research. Another reason for doing this was to ensure the reliability of results from the analysis from the answers they gave on the questionnaires.

Analysis Section

Various users of the complex randomly filled out the questionnaires at different times of the day totaling up to 550. Four hundred ninety questionnaires were successfully retrieved which meant that the analysis involved the 490 respondents whose questionnaires were retrieved. The study indicated that the majority of the respondents were male totaling up to 276 and females were fewer at 214 respondents. The majority of respondents belonged to the age group (17-24) 332, followed by (25-30) which had 138 people responding to the questionnaires and only 20 respondents fell within the age of 31 and above. The highest number of respondents of this study were single which is typical of most college going student; there were three married respondents and three that were divorced. The analysis also showed that brown (26%), orange (21%) and grey (13%) were the colors least liked by the respondents. On the other hand majority of the respondents at 132 in a number expressed their liking for the blue color, with 92 picking green, 83 with yellow and red being a favorite for only 42 of the respondents.

Results Section

Three hundred and twenty-six of the respondents claimed that they felt an increase in excitement every time they approached the complex due to the multitude of colors within the complex. Three hundred and thirty-two respondents believed that the interior color of the Palm Inn was warm and inviting. Three hundred and thirty-one respondents felt that the color of the cafeteria interior was friendly and made their meals more enjoyable. Three hundred and thirty respondent’s claimed that the interior color of the BreakPoint made them restless or too excited. All the respondents except the film majors agreed that the darkroom and the area leading up to them made them gloomy, depressed and even scared. The all mentioned they spent the least amount of time in the darkroom and the area leading up to it. Four hundred and forty respondents named the Break Point is their favorite spot with many of them not being sure of how much time they spent there. The analysis indicated that the cafeteria was the place that the respondents were more likely to get bored with the Break Point being where they were most lively. The study also indicated that the dark room and the area leading up to it had the least foot traffic in the entire students’ union complex. The students admitted to being happier and livelier in the regions where there were bright colors such as the Break Point which has shades falling within the red spectrum such as yellow and orange. The emotions evoked by the colors in the break room is what made it the most favorite place in the complex for the majority of the respondents.

Further analysis shows that the shade of red used extensively in the complex is the first thing that grabs our attention. According to Wright (15), the color red reflects entertainment and excitement in addition to being more arousing than other colors. The warm colors in the Break Point room were more arousing which is why most of the respondents socialized there but eh cool blue color in the cafeteria made it the pace where the respondents easily got bored.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is evident that color does indeed affect people’s emotions, mood and behavior. This research into the psychology of color used random students within the complex at different times of the day to ensure that they got the most accurate findings of the study. The results of the study showed that people were most lively while they were mainly around the brighter colors such as red and yellow in the Break Point. On the other hand, the research showed that majority of the respondents purposefully stayed away from the darker areas of the complex such as the dark room and the area leading up to the dark room. This is because these areas evoked fear, and uncertainty and sometimes even sadness. This informs the reasons that interior designers and artists belief on the effect of color. Interior designers can use their understanding of the emotions evoked by color to decide which colors would fit which rooms best depending on the functionality of the room.

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