Karen Schloss

Brown University

Understanding Color Preferences: An Ecological Approach

 

What determines color preferences, and how do those preferences impact behavior? The Ecological Valence Theory (EVT) posits that people’s preference for a given color is determined by the combined valences (liking/disliking) of their prior experiences with all objects of that color (Palmer & Schloss, 2010). The results of several studies support the EVT, including the findings that average color preferences are strongly related to preference for correspondingly colored objects, that color preferences can be changed by experiences with positive/negative colored objects, and affiliation with a social group (e.g., university, political party) impacts preferences for associated colors. Evidence suggests that the degree to which particular color-associated objects impact color preferences depends on how salient or activated those objects are at the moment the color is judged. Furthermore, such associations generalize to feelings about other colored objects/entities in domains where (a) people have sparse additional information on which to base their preferences (e.g., which Division 3 college team NFL fans hope will win in a football game) and (b) when choices are equivalent except for their color (e.g., Democrats and Republicans choosing among different colored M&Ms). This series of studies suggest that there is a feedback loop between colored objects and color preferences: preference for objects/entities that are associated with a given color impacts preference for that color, which then impacts which colored objects people are biased to favor/approach vs. dislike/avoid.