Woooo who else is excited for the first Psychology 101 post of the year!?!? Just me? Eh it was to be expected.

Regardless of your excitement levels I’m going to write one anyway! It’s going to be looking into colour psychology! Have you heard little fun facts such bees are attracted to the colour blue or that black absorbs the most heat? If you have then good for you! If you haven’t then that’s totally okay too because honestly I’m not even going to be talking about that I just can’t miss an opportunity to put in a fun fact. Anyway, on with the article!

What is colour psychology?

Colour psychology is the theory that different colours have different effects on our mind and can evoke a different feeling or response when we see a specific colour. However even though this concept is pretty well known there hasn’t been much thorough research regarding the topic (someone get on that, thanks) so what I’m about to tell you may or may not be accurate so your choice to believe it or not. (Honestly, I feel like that’s true with everything I say so I should just put this disclaimer at the beginning of every article).

What do the colours mean?

I’m glad you asked! Let’s go through them shall we.

Red:

As you might have heard before red is a powerful colour (which is ridiculous if you ask me, I mean how can a colour be powerful? I mean it’s not like if you wear a red shirt in a brawl you’re instantly going to win). But when psychologists say powerful I think they mean it has a strong effect on our minds as red is such a vibrant and bold colour it stands out the most.  It can sometimes have aggressive connotations as it can result in our brains sending us the fight or flight response (a psychological defence mechanism which I just realised would make a great article – so look forward to that).

Orange:

Orange is considered a ‘fun’ colour. That’s really all I can find. I have no idea how it affects our brain. But yeah wear an orange dress to a party kids it’ll make you feel more fun.

Yellow:

The colour yellow is such an attention seeker. It’s so bright it stands out and can actually cause an energising effect to those who look at it. However some studies say that too much yellow can create negative emotions such as fear and anxiety. One fun fact I found said that babies are more likely to cry in yellow rooms.

Green:

Green has a calming effect on us which makes sense as it’s the colour of trees and leaves and grass and other nature like things. It also makes us feel safe because nothing green is generally threatening (except those green venomous snakes which ya know are pretty dangerous).

Blue:

Blue is probably the most common favourite colour around the world! I mean from my experience a lot of people like blue. A reason for this favouritism is probably because blue makes us feel calm and relaxed. Maybe take this into consideration next time you’re freaking out for a test and bring a blue pencil case with you, I’m sure it will help 🙂

So yeah! That’s how colours affect our brains. Honestly though these findings are less like psychological responses and probably more like connotations that our society has associated with these colours as humans have the need to apply meaning to everything as we fear purposelessness (damn did that sound impressive or what? I totally just made that up I have no idea if that’s true).

I hope this article helps when you’re redecorating your room or icing a cupcake. See you later!

Sources:

https://www.colorpsychology.org/

https://www.petra-has-no-idea-what-she-is-talking-about.com/

http://www.colour-affects.co.uk/psychological-properties-of-colours