Scientists confirm old metaphor: angry people do see red!
18 Mar 2014
People who are angry may really 'see red' where others don't, a recent scientific study has shown. Moreover, a preference for red over blue may be an indicator of a more hostile personality, according to researchers at the North Dakota State University.
In a study examining humankind's ancient association of the colour red with anger, aggression and danger, researchers found that when shown images that were neither fully red nor fully blue, people with hostile personalities were much more likely to see red.
The researchers said the connection may be linked to our evolution from hunter-gatherer times to link red with danger and threats.
The research is believed to be the first to look at personality, hostility and the colour red, and involved a number of separate experiments.
In the first, the researchers asked a group of people which colour they preferred, red or blue. Participants then completed personality tests. Results showed that those who opted for red tended to be inter-personally more hostile.
During a second test, participants were presented with images which were faded so they were red or blue to some extent. There was no absolutely dominant colour, and they could be perceived as either. Those who predominantly saw red scored 25 per cent higher on indicators of hostility in the personality test section of the study.
"Hostile people have hostile thoughts; hostile thoughts are implicitly associated with the colour red, and therefore hostile people are biased to see this colour more frequently," the researchers said, reporting their findings in the Journal of Personality.
The test participants were presented with imaginary scenarios where they could take various forms of action. Red-preferring people were more likely to indicate that they would harm another person in the scenarios than those who preferred blue.
"A core take-home message from this research is that colour can convey psychological meaning and, therefore, is not merely a matter of aesthetics," the researchers said.