What's your favorite color? Learn what it means with color psychology!

I'm very interested in psychology, so one of the first things I ask when I meet new people is, "What's your favorite color?" Why? Because it can tell people soo much about you!

Black
Black is the color of authority and power. It is popular in fashion because it makes people appear thinner. It is also stylish and timeless. Black also implies submission. Priests wear black to signify submission to God. Some fashion experts say a woman wearing black implies submission to men. Black outfits can also be overpowering, or make the wearer seem aloof or evil. Villains, such as Dracula, often wear black.

White
Brides wear white to symbolize innocence and purity. White reflects light and is considered a summer color. White is popular in decorating and in fashion because it is light, neutral, and goes with everything. However, white shows dirt and is therefore more difficult to keep clean than other colors. Doctors and nurses wear white to imply sterility.

Red
The most emotionally intense color, red stimulates a faster heartbeat and breathing. It is also the color of love. Red clothing gets noticed and makes the wearer appear heavier. Since it is an extreme color, red clothing might not help people in negotiations or confrontations. Red cars are popular targets for thieves. In decorating, red is usually used as an accent. Decorators say that red furniture should be perfect since it will attract attention.

The most romantic color, pink, is more tranquilizing. Sports teams sometimes paint the locker rooms used by opposing teams bright pink so their opponents will lose energy.

Blue
The color of the sky and the ocean, blue is one of the most popular colors. It causes the opposite reaction as red. Peaceful, tranquil blue causes the body to produce calming chemicals, so it is often used in bedrooms. Blue can also be cold and depressing. Fashion consultants recommend wearing blue to job interviews because it symbolizes loyalty. People are more productive in blue rooms. Studies show weightlifters are able to handle heavier weights in blue gyms.

Green
Currently the most popular decorating color, green symbolizes nature. It is the easiest color on the eye and can improve vision. It is a calming, refreshing color. People waiting to appear on TV sit in "green rooms" to relax. Hospitals often use green because it relaxes patients. Brides in the Middle Ages wore green to symbolize fertility. Dark green is masculine, conservative, and implies wealth. However, seamstresses often refuse to use green thread on the eve of a fashion show for fear it will bring bad luck.

Yellow
Cheerful sunny yellow is an attention getter. While it is considered an optimistic color, people lose their tempers more often in yellow rooms, and babies will cry more. It is the most difficult color for the eye to take in, so it can be overpowering if overused. Yellow enhances concentration, hence its use for legal pads. It also speeds metabolism.

Purple
The color of royalty, purple connotes luxury, wealth, and sophistication. It is also feminine and romantic. However, because it is rare in nature, purple can appear artificial.
(This is my favorite color! I just enjoy being a classy type of chick and I have a thing for elegance and glamour. Also, some people get the wrong idea about me a lot, which I suppose goes with the "artificial" thing. But if you get to know me I am very honest and do whatever I can to prevent misunderstanding.)

Brown
Solid, reliable brown is the color of earth and is abundant in nature. Light brown implies genuineness while dark brown is similar to wood or leather. Brown can also be sad and wistful. Men are more apt to say brown is one of their favorite colors.



Read more here.


EDIT: I just noticed that orange wasn't on here!

Orange
Orange is a combination of yellow and red and is considered an energetic color. It calls to mind feelings of excitement, enthusiasm, and warmth, and is often used to draw attention, such as in traffic signs and advertising.

My problem with colors in psychology is that it causes difficulties for me when I don't have one specific favorite/preferred color xD

For example, red and blue-- polar opposites. Ah well~ Colors are almost as inexact as dreams imo.

That's interesting. Hmm. Well, what color do you dress your character in on Mabi? Which description sounds more like you? Haha. I just use this as a way to learn more about people.

I mean, I have a few favorite colors, but I have a rank or purpose for them as my favorite. My absolute favorite color is a violet/indigo color like THIS. My second favorite color is red, but not the icky bright red color. THIS type of red, which is more dark and sultry. As for clothing, I really like gold and black, and red is my favorite color to wear.

So in summation... Each of my favorites are my favorite for a reason. They describe some part of my personality as my favorites. I'm very opinionated/unique and I have a huge thing for elegance and glamour. But aside from things that describe my personality as a unique individual, I value love a lot, and it is very important to me. I could go into the depressing part of that, but let me say that to me, "to love is to live".

Edit: ...Anyways.

EVERYONE ELSE RESPOND!

No double posting

Sakubou wrote:That's interesting. Hmm. Well, what color do you dress your character in on Mabi? Which description sounds more like you? Haha. I just use this as a way to learn more about people.

I started with red, moved to blue later on because I was going to major in ice magic.

Sakubou wrote:So in summation... Each of my favorites are my favorite for a reason. They describe some part of my personality as my favorites. I'm very opinionated/unique and I have a huge thing for elegance and glamour. But aside from things that describe my personality as a unique individual, I value love a lot, and it is very important to me. I could go into the depressing part of that, but let me say that to me, "to love is to live".

So basically, we pick apart the pieces we think apply to ourselves and apply them when really, we could have sat down and analyzed ourselves. We could do similar things with types of food we like or such. There has to be a line or else you open up the can of worms where everything and anything you do has a psychological meaning.
That's what's bothered me a lot; some of the most "popular" parts of psychology are actually fairly disrespected compared to the overshadowed parts. Colors (and dreams and other such things) seem to me to be over-popularized. I'd wager most general psychology textbooks have a larger section on hypnotism than dreams, actually xD;

tl;dr Colors and other things make me sad when people say they describe who I am :c

I suppose you're right. But when I chose those as my favorite colors I had no knowledge of color psychology. However, color psychology seems to give an explanation.

I'm also very interested in astrology. I have a lot of books on it. I realize these things are ambiguous and lack proper evidence, but oftentimes they give an accurate general overview of someone's personality.

Typically I shun away from popular ideas, but they can attract the general public. I've learned this from blogging. The more I reach out to different types of people and ideas, the more people follow my blog.(Though to me it's not so much about having a lot of followers, it's just that I aim to help as many people as I can.)

I'm sorry to say, but color doesn't represent personality, and those representations also dictated by culture and society. While white may be perceived and pure and clean in western perceptions, in oriental cultures, white is the symbol of death, and what used to be traditionally worn at funerals. Red may be vibrant and stand out, but Chinese traditionally wore red during weddings due to it being seen as a lucky and auspicious color.
More to the point, assigning a description and a personality type to something as trivial as color, is a bit much, considering how different people are, because people come so many different cultures, subcultures, and all come from differing socioeconomic statuses, and all those factors contribute to forming who we are.

I never claimed for there to be a direct relationship.

Sheesh.

This thread was meant to be fun and social, not picked apart. I realize all of what you're saying, but that wasn't really the point. We're all Americans and this is American color psychology. I have yet to meet an American that doesn't connect with their favorite color at least a little bit.

After all, there's got to be a reason that certain colors resonate with us and others not, am I wrong?

I agree that this has gotten out of hand, let's stay on topic and have fun.

Gelu, what's your favorite color? And do you think the description sounds like you?

I'm sorry for picking things apart, but categorizing people tends to bother me, because everyone and everything is unique. You spoke of astrology earlier, while I do believe that people tend to share some similar characteristics, it isn't everything about them, most people who think of astrology, usually only know their Sun sign in western astrology, most people never even know that they have a ascendant, or rising sign, and a moon sign as well which is dependent on when, to the hour, they were born, which can be completely different from their sun sign. In eastern astrology, the majority of people only know their animal year, rarely do people know which of the five eastern elements that year has, nor the fact that their birth month and birth hour have a corresponding animal and element as well.

more OT: as a kid my favorite color was red, when i got older i came to dislike red and went with blue, now I'm fine with most colors, so long as they work well with an outfit or with whatever I am trying to create.

aquwin wrote:I'm sorry for picking things apart, but categorizing people tends to bother me, because everyone and everything is unique. You spoke of astrology earlier, while I do believe that people tend to share some similar characteristics, it isn't everything about them, most people who think of astrology, usually only know their Sun sign in western astrology, most people never even know that they have a ascendant, or rising sign, and a moon sign as well which is dependent on when, to the hour, they were born, which can be completely different from their sun sign. In eastern astrology, the majority of people only know their animal year, rarely do people know which of the five eastern elements that year has, nor the fact that their birth month and birth hour have a corresponding animal and element as well.

more OT: as a kid my favorite color was red, when i got older i came to dislike red and went with blue, now I'm fine with most colors, so long as they work well with an outfit or with whatever I am trying to create.

Haha it's alright, we all do that. It just became a little bit overwhelming because of some of the other mini-drama going on haha. But thank you for the apology.

I totally know what you mean, though. I look a lot into moon signs and other things as well, more than just sun signs. Perhaps some of the reason I like learning about unclear things like astrology is that my illnesses often give me depression and I look for hope in the good things I read.

I don't mean to categorize anyone. But rather see what people are like in a general sense. I feel like color psychology is a way to get an idea about someone if you've just met them. Maybe I'm just not one for surprises, but either way, my intentions are innocent.

While I agree that it is a way to get to know people, I personally don't agree with it, but that's mostly because, I plan on becoming either a counselor or a therapist. In addition to that, I've had to listen to a lot of horror and abuse stories from the view of the victims, and I've seen how labels favor the abusers within society and make things more difficult for the abused.

Anyways, I'd advise being careful in what you look into, some things about astrology and the like can open door or lead to places you don't want to go. Sometimes it's best to learn and experience as you go, knowing too much, like the future, will tend to cause stuff that might've been predicted, happen, or cause something worse to happen in it's stead.

I'm white.

Sakubou wrote:Red cars are popular targets for thieves.

FML.

My favourite colour is red 8D The paragraph on it doesn't say much psychology-wise, but if emotionally intense means emotional rollercoaster, then sure.

On a side note, although it's not an exact science, colour psychology does have some value behind it. Yes, the human-assigned meanings of colours vary between cultures, colours still invoke feelings in people. (Let's not forget the power of suggestion, either.) These feelings may be different, but for the most part, the feelings invoked line up roughly with currently accepted theories. At most, a person's favourite colour will tell you "I like life best when I feel [blank]."

In the end, psychology is a multifaceted science; a plethora of things have to be considered when attempting to dissect a person's personality and mind. This is why I adore psychology. We shouldn't shoot down new or strange ideas just because they don't fit with what we understand now. We'd never learn anything like that :P
Aristotle once said, "It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."

69Avocado69 wrote:

Sakubou wrote:Red cars are popular targets for thieves.

FML.

My favourite colour is red 8D The paragraph on it doesn't say much psychology-wise, but if emotionally intense means emotional rollercoaster, then sure.

On a side note, although it's not an exact science, colour psychology does have some value behind it. Yes, the human-assigned meanings of colours vary between cultures, colours still invoke feelings in people. (Let's not forget the power of suggestion, either.) These feelings may be different, but for the most part, the feelings invoked line up roughly with currently accepted theories. At most, a person's favourite colour will tell you "I like life best when I feel [blank]."

In the end, psychology is a multifaceted science; a plethora of things have to be considered when attempting to dissect a person's personality and mind. This is why I adore psychology. We shouldn't shoot down new or strange ideas just because they don't fit with what we understand now. We'd never learn anything like that :P
Aristotle once said, "It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."

Haha, I really appreciate you saying that. That quote describes me well.

Sakubou wrote:Haha, I really appreciate you saying that. That quote describes me well.

It's rare I find someone with a point of view similar to mine when it comes to psychology 8D And that Aristotle quote is definitely my favourite. 8D

Black