PSYCH 303 FINAL PROJECT REPORT 1

Psych 303 Assignment 3 Final Project Report

Darica Brazier

Department of Psychology, University of Michigan

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to measure whether one’s attention to image details could be

influenced by variations in the colors of backgrounds of the images. Participants (N= 57)

recruited from university organizations and public online platforms were given a survey ranging

from 5-8 minutes that presented 4 image sets with different background colors and shades (blue,

red, green) as well as a consecutive set of questions related to the images in each set. The

participants were given 30 seconds to complete the questions with as much accuracy as possible.

Using analysis methods of Cronbach’s alpha, ANOVA, post hoc Tukey, and Chi square, results

of the survey data show that across the color ranges given, participants did not show differences

in attention to detail based on color shades and background differences.

Introduction

This study that was conducted for the course focuses on color psychology and the human

perception of color in relation to attention to detail when presented with stimuli. The study was

intended to be an experiment measuring ocular attention towards image details based on color

saturation. The purpose of this study was to observe whether visual perceptions of color tones

affect cognitive attention to detail as a way to encourage a progression in the development of

graphic strategies used by marketing and advertising companies when seeking to increase

customer interest and satisfaction. This study also has the potential to influence a shift in current

educational strategies towards more creative and colorful teaching settings to aid in student

information retention in classrooms.

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When looking to understand the effects of color perception on memory and attentiveness,

many studies have been conducted to test for differences and/or similarities in visual focus based

on multiple color variations. A study conducted in 2019 found that due to the assumption that

visual focus is spread across a section of one’s visual field, athletes’ abilities to perceive objects

using peripheral vision are indeed affected by the object’s color. (Hüttermann et al., 2019) The

findings of this study suggest that one’s ability to visually perceive color variations in objects

generates an effect both on one’s ability to perceive the object and the ability to remain

attentively focused on the object. However, there can be room for error when interpreting the

effects of color on memory and attention based on color theory, seeing as though color

brightness, hue, and saturation can have drastic differentiation on their effects on one’s

perception of color. For example, a recent study conducted in 2018 on the correlation between

color brightness and feelings of positivity found that while the association between the two is in

fact strong and instinctive, the hue and saturation of the colors could also be a fathomable

explanation for expressed positivity. (Specker et al., 2018) As well, through a study by Andrew

Frane (2015) it has also been determined that the saturation of hues can determine whether

people with color vision deficiency are able to properly differentiate between color variations

seeing as though the condition causes for one to have a lessened ability to distinguish and/or

identify colors. (Frane, 2015, p. 204). Since the differences in color hues, saturation, and

brightness are often not as distinguishable when conducting experiments, the subtle differences

that they allow for in color perception and variation can cause errors when understanding the

effects of color psychology and color theory on cognition. In the study for this class, the main

focus was on color saturation and whether or not it causes for differences in detail retention to

allow for less space for error.

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As a hypothesis, it was believed that participants will have an attention to detail on the

image sets with the darker toned background color due to ocular attraction to the higher contrast

of image details compared to the lighter backgrounds. It was also proposed that questions

regarding the image sets with the darker backgrounds will have more accurate.

Methods

The participants of this experiment were pulled through a Qualtrics survey that

participants volunteered to complete in which they consented to take part as a subject.

Participants were selected from a wide range of areas including academic programs at the

university and online communities to aid in subject randomization. In total there were 98

respondents to the survey with a final sample size of 57 participants being used due to data that

could not be coded from lack of total survey completion from certain respondents. Participants’

ages ranged from 18-31 in total.

The independent variable in this study was participants’ visual perceptions of color tones,

which was operationalized through a manipulation of colors on the backgrounds of 3 image sets

using dark and pastel shades of red, green, and blue as image backgrounds. The dependent

variable was participant’s attention to detail towards images which was operationalized through

the observance of the accuracy of participant answers based on provided questions about the

image sets.

In this study, participants were issued a Qualtrics survey containing multiple pages with

sets of images that contained either a dark or light color-saturated background. The survey was

broken into multiple image sets with each set using a different color and a manipulated color
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tone and could be taken using a computer or mobile device. The survey had 4 image sets in total,

with Set 1 having no specific timer or background color (instead using the standard white color)

to prime participants for the rest of the sets in the experiment to improve internal validity and

represent the control group. The images in Set 2 contained light and dark blue backgrounds; the

images in Set 3 used red and pink backgrounds and the images in Set 4 used light and dark green

backgrounds. Each image set also contained images that were based in different categories. Set 1

contained 8 images related to clothing (white background), Set 2’s images related to animals

(blue shaded background), Set 3’s images related to sports (red shaded background), and Set 4’s

images related to fruits and vegetables (green shaded background). Sets 2-4 each timed the

participants to look at 8 different images within thirty seconds, with 4 images having a dark

shaded background and 4 images having a light shaded background as a way to observe which

background tones drew the most attention to detail to the images. Participants were also given an

extra five seconds on each set to accommodate for the time needed to read and comprehend

instructions. Lastly, after the 30-second timer ended with each image set, participants were

automatically issued a list of 5 random questions related to the previously observed images to

test for accuracy. In total the survey took between 5-8 minutes to complete for each participant

and had a set of demographic questions provided at the end. Demographic data questions

included ethnicity, gender, and age categories for participants to answer.

Using Qualtrics’s survey metrics and data analyzing features through the program JASP,

the average overall accuracy of participant answers was observed. The composite measures that

were computed were the composite scores of accuracy with each set condition focusing primarily

on Sets 2, 3, and 4 since data in Set 1 was used as a control and therefore was not utilized when

measuring total accuracy.

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Using a composite score based on accuracy as a measure of total accuracy for each

participant running from 0 to 1, with 1 being the most accurate response, the Cronbach’s alpha

test that was conducted to measure reliability had a point estimate value of 0.334 (Cronbach’s α

= 0.334) with the composite score. The results show that the Cronbach’s alpha was low, which

could be interpreted as a potential confounding variable in the experiment as well as an indicator

of poor reliability.

Results

When analyzing the survey data results, around 41% of the data could not be coded since

some participant surveys were not completed fully and therefore could not be considered. The

final sample size of the data set was 57 participants.

Since this experiment measured attention to detail by analyzing the number of correct

answers among survey results using composite scores, multiple ANOVA tests were conducted to

determine whether the means of each of the condition groups held variation. The null hypotheses

for each of the tests stated that there was no difference or association between attention to detail

(using color background shades) and accuracy scores while the alternative hypotheses suggested

that there was a difference between attention to detail and accuracy score. After running an

ANOVA test for the Set 2 condition with the independent variable being the Set 2 condition

variable and the dependent variable being the Set Total Composite Score as a measure of

accuracy, the results indicated that there was no difference between the conditions F (1, 57) =

0.02, p > 0.05 showing that there was no variation in attention to detail and answer accuracy

when participants viewed the blue shaded background images which concluded that the null

hypothesis fails to be rejected. After running an ANOVA test for the Set 3 condition with the
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independent variable being the Set 3 condition variable and the dependent variable being the Set

Total Composite Score, the results also indicated that there was no difference between the

conditions F (1, 57) = 0.43, p > 0.05 showing that there was no variation in attention to detail

and answer accuracy when participants viewed the red shaded background images showed the

null hypothesis fails to be rejected. Lastly, after running an ANOVA test for the Set 4 condition

with the independent variable being the Set 4 condition variable and the dependent variable

being the Set Total Composite Score, the results showed that there was no difference between the

conditions F (1, 57) = 1.39, p > 0.05 concluding that there was no variation in attention to detail

and answer accuracy when participants viewed the green shaded background images and that the

null hypothesis fails to be rejected.

Overall the results indicated that accuracy scores did not statistically differ across

conditions. When looking at the F-statistic of the ANOVA tests however, the F-statistic of the

Set 4 condition was larger (F (1, 57) = 1.39) compared to the Set 2 condition and Set 3 condition

(F (1, 57) = 0.02, F (1, 57) = 0.43) so a post hoc Tukey test was conducted to see which sample

means were significantly different. The null hypothesis was that there was no difference between

sample means of the color conditions while the alternative hypothesis was that there was a

difference between sample means of the color conditions. After conducting the post hoc Tukey

test the results showed that there was no significant difference across sample means: Set 2

condition (M = 0.62, SD = 0.196, p > 0.05) Set 3 condition (M = 0.63, SD = 0.18, p > 0.05) Set

4 condition (M = 0.6, SD = 0.197, p > 0.05) indicating that there was no significant difference

in participants’ accuracy and attention to detail in the survey across sample means. The results of

this test and the ANOVAs suggest that the average person does not provide more or less accurate
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responses based on color background differences and that there is no significant difference in

participants’ attention to detail based on different background color shades.

Lastly a simple Chi square test was conducted between the demographic categorical

variables of ethnicity and gender to measure whether there was any observable relationship

between these two variables. The null hypothesis was that there was no significant difference

between ethnicity and gender while the alternative hypothesis was that there was a significant

difference across ethnicity and gender. After running the test the results showed that there was a

significant difference between observed gender and ethnicity X^2 (24, n = 60) = 78.2, p <

0.001 showing that more women volunteered to take the survey with a majority of

participants having either an African American or Caucasian ethnicity and that gender and

ethnicity were not evenly distributed across the sample of participants. With this test the null

hypothesis was rejected showing that there was a difference across ethnicity and gender of

survey participants.

Discussion

Through the tests that were run for this experiment including the Cronbach’s alpha,

ANOVAs, post hoc Tukey, and Chi Square, overall it can be concluded that there is no

evidence that one’s attention to detail is influenced by different color shades, particularly

when looking at image backgrounds. The original hypothesis of this experiment stated that

attention to detail on the image sets with the darker toned background colors would allow for

more accuracy and memory retention due to color contrasts, however the findings of the study

suggest that across different colors and color shades there are no differences in how much
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attention to detail is given to perceived images. The analysis of Cronbach’s alpha (Cronbach’s α

= 0.334) indicates that the study had poor reliability. When looking at validity the experiment

had low internal validity seeing as though there was little evidence for causality based on data

results although there was a control factor. The external validity was moderate since the

experiment can be generalized to a larger population with the potential of similar results should

the study be conducted again. There were some errors with the construct validity due to the

multiple aspects of the images that could have affected results. For instance, since each image set

had two different color shaded backgrounds as well as multiple items in each image, it is

possible that participants focused more on memory retention to the images as a whole rather than

focusing on smaller details, which could be a confounding factor in the results of the study. If

this study were to be conducted again, it is suggested that participants be given multiple sets of

the same images with different color shaded backgrounds rather than have 3 separate image sets

of 3 different colored backgrounds to prevent poorer results around attention to detail. Overall,

the research conducted in this study has allowed for a deeper look into how color shades and

hues could potentially affect one’s perception of an image and attention to its general detail and

with further investigations the potential for more significant results is possible.
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References

Hüttermann, S., Smeeton, N. J., Ford, P. R., & Williams, A. M. (2019). Color perception and

attentional load in dynamic, time-constrained environments. Frontiers in Psychology, 9.

https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02614

Specker, E., Leder, H., Rosenberg, R., Hegelmaier, L. M., Brinkmann, H., Mikuni, J., &

Kawabata, H. (2018). The universal and automatic association between brightness and

positivity. Acta Psychologica, 186, 47–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2018.04.007

Frane, A. (2015). A call for considering color vision deficiency when creating graphics for

psychology reports. Journal of General Psychology, 142(3), 194–211. https://doi-

org.proxy.lib.umich.edu/10.1080/00221309.2015.1063475
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Appendices

Qualtrics Survey Link

https://umich.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9ZkyqDORfzi2dVA
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