Perceptual and Motor Skills, 1974, 38, 763-766.

@ Perceptual and Motor Skills 1974

EFFECTS OF FOUR PSYCHOLOGICAL PRIMARY COLORS

ON GSR, HEART RATE A N D RESPIRATION RATE

KEITH W. JACOBS AND FRANK E. HUSTMYER, JR.'

Eastern Illinois Univerrity

Summary.-Judges selected from ISCC-NBSpatches those colors which were

most representative of red, yellow, green, and blue. These colors were pre-
sented for 1 min. each with GSR, heart rate, and respiration being recorded.
There was a significant color effect on GSR but not on the other measures. Red
was significantly more arousing than blue or yellow and green more than blue.

Early research on the psychological aspects of color was concerned with

such subjective aspects as individual color preferences. Guilford ( 1931) found
hue to be the most important factor in color preference. Hevner ( 1935) found
that college students described various colors in emotional terms with red usually
described as happy or exciting and blue described as serene or dignified. In an
experimental study of the effect of red and green surroundings on psychomotor
tasks and judgment the results were inconclusive (Nakshian, 1964).
Another approach to color effect is to investigate the differential effect on
GSR, heart rate, respiration, and other autonomic nervous system functions.
Wilson ( 1966) found red significantly more arousing than green (GSR) . This
finding was consistent with subjective reports following the experimental ses-
sion. Red was variously described as more stimulating, awakening, and attention-
drawing.
- Nourse and Welch ( 1971) studied the GSR as a function of violet and
green illumination and found a significant difference for the first trial but this
difference did not appear in the later trials. A spectral analysis of the violet
used showed the spectral components were a 455 mm. (blue) and 677 mm.
(red). So these results may only confirm the Wilson (1966) finding of red
be:ng more arousing than green. Gerard (1958) reported that the autonomic
nervous system and the visual cortex were significantly less aroused during blue
than during red or white illumination. Red, blue, and white lights were projected
on a screen, and the results indicated a significant color effect on GSR, respira-
tion rate, frequency of eye blink, systolic blood pressure, heart rate, and EEG
measures.
A wide variety of colors have been used in previous studies. Gerard ( 1958)
made an arbitrary selection of colors and earlier researchers used colors specified
in the Munsell notation but when these color patches are examined it can be
seen that they are neither virid or strong colors. This study used colors which
were selected by judges as being red, blue, green, and yellow rather than using a
'Reprint requests should be addressed to: K. W. Jacobs, Sourhern Station Box 5238, Uni-
versity of Southern Mississippi, Hartiesburg, Mississippi 39401.
764 K. W. JACOBS 8: F. E. HUSTMYER, JR.

pior; selection. M e a s u r e s of responsitivity t o f o u r h u e s w e r e u s e d in c o n t r a s t

to t h e l i m i t a t i o n t o t w o h u e s f o u n d i n p r e v i o u s studies.

Ss were 24 male college students recruited as unpaid volunteers from undergraduate

psychology courses at Eastern Illinois University. T h e median age for Ss was 20 yr., with
a range of 17 to 27 yr.
Ten male observers who did not participate in this study were asked to select from
the Inter-Society Color Council-National Bureau of Standards (ISCC-NBS), NBS
Standard Sample No. 2106, those colors which they considered to be the best examples
of red, yellow, green, and blue. Eight of the ten observers unanimously agreed on the
colors listed i n Table 1.
In all cases the color unanimously agreed upon was the most saturated color avail-
able i n each hue. The ISCC-NBS designations (Kelly & Judd, 1955) indicate the colors
selected have been described as either vivid or strong examples of those colors.
The appropriate color plates were photographed o n Ektachrome X-35-mm. film
under aruficial lighting balanced to daylighc conditions by using an 85c filter o n the
camera lens to obtain an accurate color rendition.
The stimulus colors which had been reproduced o n slides were projected with a
Kodak Carousel projector onto a 3- x 4-ft. projection screen located 1 0 ft. in front of
Ss. A second projector was used to project a whice interslide stimulus between color
presentations. A dissolve unit (Kodak, Model 2 ) was used to dissolve between projectors,
thereby avoiding the potentially disruptive effects of a slide change o n the screen. The
stimuli covered a 23- X 33-in. area. All colors and the inter-stimulus conditions were
presented at 16 ft-c. Ambient illumination was a ceiling, 60-w. bulb.
Physiological measures were recorded o n a 4-channel physiograph ( E & M Instru-
ments, Model DMP-4A) which was located in the experimental room to the right of Ss.
A n exosomatic GSR was recorded from the dorsal and ventral surfaces of the middle digit
of the right middle finger using commercially available lead electrodes with a surface area
of 3/4 by 1 in. Heart rate was measured using a locally manufactured photo-plethysmo-
graph attached to the appropriate size finger o n the left hand. Respiration was measured
by means of a thermistor located below the right nostril. An air conditioner was installed
i n the room in an attempt to control temperature conditions and to provide a constant,
masking noise background. The temperature range was from 74" to 92" F, with a
median temperature of 85". The room temperature for any single S did not vary by
more than l o during the session.
All experimental sessions were held between 1 P.M. and 9 P.M. Color vision was
rested first, using the Dvorine Pseudoisochromatic plates, to eliminate color defective Ss.
S was seated i n a reclining type chair i n a 12- by 15-ft. room.

TABLE 1
COLORSSELECTEDFROM SMPLES OF INTER-SOCIETY
COLOR COUNCIL-
NATIONALBUREAUOF STANDARDS
Color ISCC-NBS Designation Munsell Renotation
Red 11 vivid red 5.OR 3.9/15.4
Yellow 82 vivid yellow 3.3Y 8.0/14.3
Green 139 vivid green 3.2G 4.9/11.1
Blue 178 strong blue 2.9PG 4.1/10.4
 PRIMARY COLORS AND PHYSIOLOGICAL AROUSAL 765

The instructions indicated that the purpose of the investigation was to determine
what effect various kinds of pictures have on the nervous system. They were instructed
to relax for 10 min. and then their "rest" o r basal activity would be measured prior to
the experiment proper.
During the "rest" period white illumination was presented for 1 0 min., followed by
each of the four colors for 1 rnin., interspaced with 1 min. of the white condition. Four
sequences of color presentations were used to ensure that each color appeared an equal
number of times in each position. Each experimental S was assigned to a color sequence,
in the order of his appearance at the laboratory. T h e sequences were randomly deter-
mined as required by a replicated Latin square design.

RESULTSAND DISCUSSION
GSR responsivity was defined as a maximum change in skin resistance
which occurred during the 15 sec. following each stimulus color presentation.
This change was converted to conductance measures and was submitted to a
log transformation. A resistance of 1 ohm was added to all resistance scores
prior to obtaining conductance, in order to avoid an infinitely negative log, which
would have resulted from transformat'on of a 0 resistance change. Heart rate
and respiration measurements were made during the first 30 sec. of the color
stimulus presentation. The difference between the white light response level and
the colored light response level was used to indicate the effect of color.
A Latin square analysis of variance was carried out on the GSR, heart rate,
and respiration measures. The results are presented in Table 2, showing that
only differences in GSR were significant.

TABLE 2
LATIN SQUARE
ANALYSISOF VARIANCEON PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGICAL
MEASURES ( F RATIOS)

Measure Color Trials

GSR 3.359* 2.491
Heart Rate 0.263 0.344
Respiration 1.606 3.286*

The nature of the differential color effects on GSR are presented in Fig. 1.
It is apparent that the most arousing color was red, followed by green and yel-
low with blue the least arousing. A t test for correlated data was calculated for
all possible pairs with red vs blue, green vs blue, and red vs yellow being signifi-
cant ( fl 4 .05). The trial effect for GSR was insignificant. Neither heart-
rate data nor the respiration rate supported the hypothesis of a differential color
effect. For the respiration data there was a sign'ficant difference for trials.
That is, the decrease in respiration rate actually became less from trial to trial and
by the fohch trial showing an increase from the white condition when the color
was presented.
 K. W. JACOBS & F. E. HUSTMYER, JR.

FIG. 1. Arousal values (conductance)

of 4 colors

u RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE

Hypothesized differential reaction to colors was significant for GSR but

not for heart rate or respiration. The lack of a significant differential color
effect on heart rate is consistent with the single study which used heart rate as
the dependent variable (Gerard, 1958). The lack of a signif'cant effect on
respiration, however, disagrees with Gerard's study.
The GSR significance between red and blue is consistent with Gerard's
(1958) work but the lack of significance between red and green disagrees with
Wilson's (1966) findings and probably those of Nourse and Welch (1971).
The speculation concerning the reasons for differences in the studies would
seem to point, first and foremost, to differences in the stimuli themselves.
Neither this study nor the others cited used the same specifications for the
colors used. The technique or color selection used here, i.e., S's choice of red,
blue, etc., did not lead to a complete response different'ation of each color but
did find signif icanc difference between some colors. This approach warrants
further use. Specifically, a choice of colors on ocher bases, e.g., colors liked
or disliked the most, could be used as stimuli with physiological responses as
the dependent variables. This subject-selection approach may well lead to a
more fruitful analysis of responses to color.
REFERENCES
GERARD,R. Differential effects of colored lights o n psycho-physiological functions. Un-
published doctoral dissertation, Univer. of California, Los Angeles, 1958.
GUILPORD, J. P. The prediction of affective value. American JOUT?ZU/! of P~ch010gy,
1931, 43, 469-478.
HEVNER,K. Experimental studies of the affective value of colors and lines. Journal of
Applied Psychology, 1935, 19, 385-398.
INTER-SOCIETY COLOR COUNCIL-NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS.ISCC-NBS Cen-
troid Color Charts. (NBS Standard Sample No. 2106) Washington, D.C.: Na-
tional Bureau of Standards, nd.
KELLY,K. L., & JUDD, D. B. T h e ISCC-NBS method o f designating coloss and a dic-
t i o ~ r yo j color ~ m m e s . (National Bureau of Standards Circular No. 553) Wash-
ington, D.C.:National Bureau of Standards, 1955.
NAKSHIAN, J. S. The effects of red and green surroundings o n behavior. Jourml o f
General Psychology, 1964, 70, 143-161.
NOURSE, J. C., & WELCH, R. B. Emotional attributes of color: a comparison of violet
and green. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 1971, 32, 403-406.
WILSON,G . D. Arousal properties of red versus green. Perceptual and Motor Shills,
1966, 23, 947-949.
Accepted Jnnrtary I S , 1974.