Do you feel refreshed when you look at the blue sky, or do you feel loveliness when you look at pink flowers?
People are unconsciously influenced by colors in various ways.
Color is an important element in design because understanding and utilizing its characteristics can lead to branding and guide user behavior.
Therefore, in this article, we will explain the psychological effects and influences of colors, as well as the substitute characteristics of each color.
Color has a psychological impact
In our daily lives, humans are unconsciously influenced by many colors.
For example, when it comes to food menus, people are more likely to want to eat a bright photo than a pale one.
In this way, color affects our five senses and has a psychological impact.
Understanding the impact and using it intentionally will make your designs more effective.
Color impressions are largely influenced by individual experience.
The image of color varies depending on individual differences and experiences and is also influenced by the culture in which one is born and raised.
For example, green is generally considered to be soothing, but if green is the type of insect that you have hated since childhood, you may get the impression that green = insects = dislike = unsettling.
However, some images are common to most people due to psychological and physiological influences, and images may become fixed due to the perception that “this is the color that many people feel.”
Do men and women see different colors of the rainbow?!
Did you know that men and women can recognize different numbers of colors? This is due to differences in body structure and hormonal influences.
It is said that while men can see seven colors in the rainbow, women can see as many as 29 colors.
In other words, even if the same color is the same, men and women see it differently, and their perceptions and impressions are also different.
These are important points to keep in mind, depending on the purpose and content of the design.
7 psychological effects of color
Among the various psychological effects that colors have, we will introduce seven representative ones.
- 1. Temperature sensation: cool and warm colors
- 2. Weight: light and heavy colors
- 3. Sense of distance: advancing colors and receding colors
- 4. Size: Expansion color and contraction color
- 5. Emotions: excitement and calm
- 6. Taste
- 7. Fragrance
I will explain each step in detail.
1. Temperature sensation: cool and warm colors
- Cool colors: Colors that give a feeling of coldness or coolness.
- Warm colors: colors that give you a sense of heat and warmth
We sense temperature from colors by acting on the sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves, which are autonomic.
Make use of the sense of temperature in your design by using red and orange in situations where you want to feel warmth, and blue in situations where you want to feel cool.
2. Weight: light and heavy colors
- Light color: Bright and bright color
- Heavy color: dark and low brightness color
For example, if your safe is pure white, doesn’t it look light and make you feel like you can lift it?
Even if the weight is the same, a color with high brightness will make it look lighter, and a color with low brightness will give the impression of being heavier.
Humans are unconsciously aware of gravity, so placing heavy-looking colors at the bottom will give a sense of stability.
When designing the arrangement of colors, be sure to keep gravity and stability in mind.
3. Sense of distance: advancing colors and receding colors
- Advance color: Color that appears to be coming towards you
- Receding color: Color that appears to be receding backward.
Color creates a sense of distance and also affects the impression of spaciousness.
Warm colors and bright colors are advancing colors, and cool colors and dark colors are receding colors. For example, if you want the ceiling of a room to look high, blue-colored wallpaper will be more effective than red-colored wallpaper.
4. Size: Expansion color and contraction color
- Expanding color: Color that appears larger even in the same area
- Shrinkage color: A color that makes the same area appear smaller
White, warm colors and brigrs are expansion colors that make things appear larger, while black, cool colors, and dark are contraction colors that make them appear smaller.
These are white and black Go stones, but because the white stones expand and appear larger, they are made slightly smaller so that they appear to be the same size.
Also, black makes you look smaller and tighter, so if you want to look slimmer, black clothes are better than white clothes.
5. Emotions: excitement and calm
- Exciting colors: Colors that have the effect of increasing heart rate
- Calming colors: colors that give you calmness
Warm and bright colors tend to raise your pulse and body temperature, making you feel better and cheaper.
Cool colors and dull colors with low saturation tend to lower your pulse and body temperature, making you feel calm.
For example, the bright red cape of a bullfighter is said to be a color that excites the audience.
For your bedroom interior, cool, desaturated colors will help you sleep more calmly than bright colors.
6. Taste
The image of taste that we get from color is greatly influenced by the color of the ingredients and raw materials, such as “lemon = sour = yellow”.
- spicy: red
- Bitter: brown/black
- Sour: yellow
- Sweet: pink pastel color
- No appetite: blue
In design, you can use color to connect the product or food you want to promote and the image you want to express.
7. Fragrance
The relationship between scent and color is influenced by ingredients, raw materials, and objects, just like taste. Unconsciously, we associate colors with things, and from there we imagine scents.
- Pink and pastel colors: floral scent
- Yellow and orange: citrus scent
- Bright blue: Refreshing scent
For fragrances and aromas, it is used in package designs that utilize easily associated images, such as purple = lavender and yellow = lemon
Image of representative colors
We will introduce the characteristics and images of each of the 10 representative colors.
red
Passion, vitality, strength, excitement, elation, anger, vjoye, brightness
Red is a color that acts on the sympathetic nervous system and increases pulse and body temperature.
As a result, you feel strong energy and warmth, and your emotions tend to be heightened. It easily stimulates human instincts and is also effective in caution, warning signs, and announcements of sales and advantageous events.
orange
Active, cheerful, bright, warm, sunny, healthy, lively, fresh
Orange brings a bright and lively impression and has the characteristic that it is difficult to receive negative impressions. It is a color that makes you feel less anxious and gives you positive energy.
It is said to have the effect of activating the functions of internal organs and is used in designs related to restaurants and food.
yellow
Hope, vitality, lightness, light, energy, activity, attention, brightness
Yellow, associated with light, gives a bright and hopeful impression. It is said to improve concentration and judgment, so it is effective when you want to speed up your thinking.
It is mainly used in combination with black to create a contrast and is also used as a sign to express danger or caution.
blue
Trustworthy, intelligent, calm, sincere, clean, refreshing, sad, cold, quiet
Blue lowers your pulse and body temperature, giving you a sense of calm, and representing serenity and sincerity. Because it has an intellectual image, it is a color that is often used in designs in fields such as medical care, education, and professions.
It is said that placing something blue on your computer or desk can improve your work efficiency, as it improves concentration.
green
Relaxation, nature, refreshment, health, youthfulness, healing, peace, safety, refreshment
Green is a color that strongly evokes images of nature, giving the impression of peace, safety, and healing. It is a color that makes you feel relaxed and peaceful and balances your mind.
Because it gives a sense of natural energy such as health and youth, it is also used in situations where you want to reduce conflicts and negative emotions.
purple
Nobility, elegance, elegance, mystery, tradition, elegance, romance, bewitching
Purple is a color that gives a noble and elegant impression and has a calming effect that calms the mind.
In the past, purple dye was so valuable that only people of high status could wear it. Therefore, it is also a color that has strong ties to power and religion.
It is often used in spiritual settings, and it is a good idea to incorporate it when you want to express a mystical image.
pink
Cute, youthful, sweet, happiness, kindness, softness, love
Pink is a color that relieves tension and gives an impression of softness and gentleness. It is often used in products and services aimed at women because it represents happiness, loveliness, and compassion.
It is a color that is also used to represent spring because of the image of cherry blossoms, which are symbolic of spring.
It is a color that gives a sense of sweetness, so it is often used in sweets-related designs.
tea
Warmth, simplicity, history, old-fashioned, calm, simplicity, solidity, quietness
Brown is a color that gives a sense of calm, peace, and stability because it is associated with the earth. It is also reminiscent of wood, giving a sense of warmth, simplicity, and history.
Green and brown coexist in nature, so they are a very compatible combination without any discomfort.
It is used in a wide range of designs because it is non-stimulating, relieves tension, and has the effect of relaxing both mind and body.
White
Clean, Neat, Simple, Pure, Holy, Pure, Nothingness, Innocence, Justice
White is an achromatic color that has no tint and is the brightest of all colors. It gives a clean and innocent impression and has a sacred image.
We often see images of heaven, angels, and God expressed in white. Since it represents purity and trust, it is also used in designs that want to express a clean image.
black
Profound feeling, strength, solemnity, luxury, urbane, majesty, fear, sinister, evil, death
Black is an achromatic color, meaning it absorbs light without reflecting it. It has a strong influence on other colors, giving an impression of solidity and luxury, giving a sense of strength.
It also gives off negative images such as darkness, ominousness, evil, and death, so be careful when using it in your designs.
