Affective association with and preference for flexible brace colors in older adults with spinal deformities

Patients with adult spinal deformities, often suffer from the physical shortcomings of rigid braces and psychological hurdles of traditional rigid bracing treatment. The color of flexible braces is a physical element that influences user perception and treatment acceptance. This study aims to investigate the affective valence and preferences of patients with adult spinal deformities toward contextless colors and flexible brace colors, respectively, then understand their color requirements of flexible braces in terms of the color attributes (lightness and chroma). A total of 32 Chinese participants with adult spinal deformities (25 females and 7 males aged 61.9 ± 4.16) participated in the study. Participants are required to score 36 contextless and brace colors using the affective appraisal scale and the colors are measured using spectrophotometer. The experimental results showed that context is an important factor in influencing the affective perception but not the color preferences of participants. Adult spinal deformities patients have a more positive affective connotations toward the brace color with lighter achromatic shades. This study provides new insights for the choosing of colors during the design process of medical orthoses.     

Color combination criteria in Le Corbusier's Purist architecture based on Salubra claviers from 1931

We have carried out a new study of the color combinations selected by Le Corbusier in ‘les claviers de couleurs’ for the Salubra wallpaper company in 1931, by analyzing them in the Natural Color System, which allows us to understand the perceptive variables of colors (hue, blackness, and chromaticness) as well as their combination criteria. Regarding the perceptive variables, we have discussed the selected hue ranges in relation to other color proposals of Le Corbusier himself, and we have shown the extensive presence of earthy hues, or the noteworthy absence of other colors such as yellows, violets, black, and white. We have also analyzed the chromaticness of colors, which is generally low, and the blackness, also very limited. In relation to the combination criteria, we aim to find out the underlying order in the color combinations by studying the similarities and contrasts of their perceptive variables. We demonstrate graphically, by a navigable three‐dimensional model, and with statistical support, some principles in Le Corbusier's color preferences, such as the combination of colors with equal chromaticness, the search of some contrast in blackness, or the usual resource of contrasting cool with warm colors, something slightly different to the contrast of complementary colors. We have also discussed other compositional criteria held by Le Corbusier to use color in his Purist architecture, which are related to the position and proportion of the surfaces to be colored, the connotations associated to different hues, or the use of plain colors, among others. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 41, 85–100, 2016     

Color bizarreness effects in object memory: Evidence from a recall test and eye tracking

The main purpose of this study was to examine whether we could find a color bizarreness effect in object memory. Given robust results that objects with bizarre shapes are remembered better than those with common shapes, we would also expect to find a color bizarreness effect. In experiment 1, as in most studies of bizarreness effects, participants were presented pictures one by one in the learning phase, and recalled the object names in the test phase. In experiment 2, we presented multiple objects simultaneously in the learning phase and measured how long participants looked at each object by eye tracking. If participants paid attention to bizarre color objects, it would provide strong support for a color bizarreness effect. The results supported the existence of this effect. Our results strengthen research findings on bizarreness effects in pictorial materials in a different aspect. Not only an object's shape, but also its color can produce the bizarreness effect. Furthermore, we clearly demonstrated that bizarre colors attract attention and enhance object memory. This could be applied to making memorable advertisements and creating learning materials.     

Effects of hue,saturation, and brightness on preference

A study was done to investigate preference responses for foreground–background color relationships. To do this, 123 university undergraduates in Ankara, Turkey, were asked to view eight background colors selected from HSB color space on which color squares of differing hues, saturations, and brightnesses were presented. Subjects were asked to show the color square they preferred on the presented background color. Findings showed that colors having maximum saturation and brightness were most preferred. Blue was the most preferred hue regardless of background. The findings for preferences for foreground–background color relationships are also included in this article. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 27, 199–207, 2002; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/col.10051     

Color preference affected by mode of color appearance

Most color preference research focuses on colors in an object color mode. In our daily life, however, colors are perceived not only as an object color mode but also as other modes, such as unnatural object color and light source color modes. To explore the effect of the color appearance mode on color preference, we examined the relationship between color preference and the mode of color appearance. Thirty‐three color chips were chosen from the Munsell notation varying in hues and chromas. The color chips were presented in different color appearance modes by changing the subject's room illuminance and the color chip room illuminance. The experimental results showed that the brightest and most saturated colors were preferred. It was found that the subject preferred color in a light source color mode and unnatural object color mode to color in an object color mode. Moreover, we found that hue had a small effect on color preference in the light source color mode. We also investigated the relationship between color preference and the perceived color attributes (perceived chromaticness, whiteness, and blackness). In a supplementary experiment, elementary color naming was conducted. The results showed that the perceived chromaticness, perceived whiteness, and perceived blackness play a role for the determination of color preference for different color appearance modes. We, consequently, suggest that color preference is dominated not only by color attributes but also by the mode of color appearance. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 2010     

Correlations between color attributes and children's color preferences

This study examined the role of color attributes (lightness and saturation) on children's color preferences for interior room colors. It also investigated children's most preferred colors among each of the five major hue families in the Munsell color system using scale‐models. Previous color preference studies have typically been done with small color chips or papers, which are very different from seeing a color applied on wall surfaces. A simulation method allowed for investigating the value of color in real contexts and controlling confounding variables. Forty‐five color samples were displayed on scale‐models to 63 children ages 7–11 years old. This study identified children's most preferred colors among each of the five major hue families in Munsell color system. It also demonstrated that saturation was positively correlated with children's preferences in the red, green, blue, and purple hue families. In the yellow hue family, interestingly, lightness has a positive correlation with preferences. Children's gender differences were found in that girls prefer red and purple more than boys. These findings lead to color application guidelines for designers to understand better color and eventually to create improved environments for children and their families. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 39, 452–462, 2014     

Colored apparel and its potential influence on heterosexual attraction

The objective of this study is to determine if men would follow the “red effect” when choosing colors for women to wear on a date, and also to determine if the colors that men would wear when going on a date would be the same as the colors that females (their date) would wish them to wear. A set of psychophysical data was generated from this experiment, where participants were asked to rank a set of 10 colored samples based on preference for each question asked. There were three different sets of colored samples. The set of colored samples given to the participant depended on the question. A total of five questions were asked. Scaling analysis was done on the data to organize a set of items according to preferences providing values, an interval scale (Z values), that correspond to the relative perceptual differences among the stimuli. The Z values were graphed to show the general preference of colors for women to wear, and the preference of colors for men to wear. A Spearman's rank-order correlation coefficient (SRCC) was calculated comparing each individual's rank order with the mean rank order for that specific question. An average Spearman's rank order was calculated for each question and each gender in order to determine the variability in answers. Scaling results indicate that men follow the “red effect,” but women preferred to wear other colors such as turquoise, blue, or yellow depending on the outfit. Males and females agreed that no matter the colored bottoms (denim or black), blue was the preferred color top for men to wear. SRCC results showed a lot of variability between individual answers and the mean answer indicating that participants' rankings did not necessarily agree with general color preferences presented in the scaling analysis. While scaling analysis might suggest certain color preferences such as men following the “red effect” and women preferring to wear blue, the poor correlation found using SRCC between the individual answers and the mean rank orders suggests that color preferences for each individual are inherently unique.     

Chromatic adaptation to illumination investigated with adapting and adapted color

The state of chromatic adaptation was investigated by using the two‐room technique. This technique involves a subject in a room who looks a white board in a separate test room through a window and judges the color of the window using the elementary color naming method. When the subject room is illuminated with a colored light and the test room with a white light, the window appears to be a very vivid color, for which the apparent hue depends on the color of the subject room. The color is referred to as the adapted color. The subject also evaluated the appearance of the illumination color of the subject room, which is called the adapting color. Two types of illuminating light in the subject room, fluorescent lamps with 7 colors and LED lamps with 19 colors, were employed. The adapting and the adapted colors were plotted on a polar diagram that was used in the opponent color theory, from which the hue angles were obtained. The hue angle difference between the two colors did not appear to be 180° except for one pair of adapting and the adapted colors, which implies that chromatic adaptation does not follow the opponent color concept. An improvement was achieved to explain the results by introducing complementary colors relation between the adapting and adapted color.     

Experimental determination of laws of color harmony. Part 5: The harmony content of the various hue triads

We, in 1956 the Department of Architecture at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics, decided to start an extensive color harmony experiment. The experimental work, the collation, and processing of the collected data, lasting 50 years, was completed in 2006. The experiments described in this article are based on earlier experimental results obtained from investigation into the harmony content of hue pairs. We then decided to search for a third hue, which in association with an existing pair, with high‐color harmony, forms a hue triad with high‐harmony content too. The compositions prepared for the experiment were composed in each case of three hues of four identical saturation but different brightness, forming a group of 12 colors. The color content of the compositions covered the color space uniformly. That was the first stage in the experiment, carried out with 60 compositions. In the second stage, we investigated the effect of the saturation content of the colors used in the composition, on the harmony content of the hue triads. For this experiment, we prepared 48 compositions. In these experiments, we applied the method of grading. We concluded that the level of the harmony content of the hue triads depends on the inclination between the hue planes in the Coloroid color space. We also concluded that to every hue, selected for starting point, six well‐definable groups of hues can be ordered from the Coloroid color space, from which color triads with high harmony content, can be selected. It showed conclusively that the saturation level of the individual members of the triads has a significant influence on their harmony content. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 2011     

The influence of color on impulsiveness and arousal: Part 1 – Hue

Impulsiveness and arousal are two similar yet distinct emotional and behavioral states that have been shown to be influenced by color in many fields, such as clothing and environment design. This series of studies investigates the fundamental theory of how color impacts on people's impulsiveness and arousal states. To achieve this goal, psychophysical methods were used to examine the impact of color environment on impulsiveness and arousal. Two main factors were used to quantify them: response time and error rate in problem solving. The psychophysical experiment was designed to examine whether, in a particular color environment, the response time and error rate were different. Participants sat in front of a large TV screen showing different colored backgrounds against which a range of psychometric tests were completed. The color backgrounds varied in hue. During the experiment, participants were required to give their responses to each of the psychometric tests as quickly and accurately as possible. The results showed that different colors can significantly influence response time and error rate, which suggests that color has a distinct influence on impulsiveness and arousal. Gender difference has also been investigated. This article mainly discusses hue influence on impulsiveness and arousal. The influence of chroma along with hue will be explored in the next article.     

Emotional response to color across media

In this study, the characteristics of emotional responses to color are explored in two empirical studies. In particular, the relationship between color attributes and emotional dimensions—valence, arousal, and dominance—is analyzed. To account for the cognitive quantity of color, 36 color stimuli were selected following hue and tone categorizations and based on the CIELAB LCh system. In one experiment, the colors were presented on A5‐size glossy paper whereas the identical colors were displayed on CRT monitors in the other experiment. In both experiments, the subjects assessed the emotional responses to each color stimulus using a Self‐Assessment‐Manikin (SAM), which consists of three rows of five pictograms illustrating the three dimensions of emotion, respectively. The empirical results provide evidence that the patterns of affective judgment of colors can be profiled in terms of the three dimensions of emotion (Reliability coefficient, Cronbach's alpha > 0.7). All three attributes of colors, i.e. hue, Chroma, and Lightness, influenced the emotional responses (repeated measurement One‐way ANOVA, P < 0.05), and especially, Chroma was always positively correlated with each of the three emotional dimensions (r > 0.60 P < 0.01). Moreover, the results indicate that emotional responses to color vary more strongly with regard to tone than to hue categories. Comparing the SAM ratings between the two experiments, a systemic explanation has yet to be found to conclude that there is a media effect on the emotional responses to colors. Furthermore, the process of affective judgment of colors and the limit of color as an emotion elicitor are discussed. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., Col Res Appl, 2010.     

Evaluation of the visibility of colored objects under led lighting with various correlated color temperatures

This study proposes a “visibility” concept of colored objects that includes a combination of color brightness and appearance perception of colored objects that are illuminated by seven LED lights (each with a CIE color rendering index under 80 but with various correlated color temperatures). To determine the brightness perception of colored objects, luminance calculations and measurements were conducted. The areas of the “color brightness graph” in this study correspond to the results of eight different color sample papers under each of the LED lights with different CCTs. The luminance values were calculated by multiplying the SPD by the spectral luminous efficiency and spectral reflectance of a colored object. The luminance values were measured under these conditions to identify the relationship between the luminance calculations and the measured values. Efficient CCTs were identified for each color sample in terms of the brightness of the colored object. Further subjective evaluations were also conducted to identify the relationship between luminance values and subjective brightness perception. In addition, subjective evaluations of the color appearance perception were conducted to identify the overall visibility concept of colored objects. The subjective evaluations included brightness perception, color appearance, and similarity of the reference light source. The visibility of the colored objects was analyzed according to the results of the brightness and appearance perception of the colored objects that were illuminated by LED lights with various CCTs. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 42, 78–88, 2017     

Surface color and color constancy

Color constancy is often treated as the tendency of surfaces to stay the same perceived color under changing illumination or context (removing/adding/replacing surrounding objects). But these types of color constancies are not basic ones and there is another kind of color constancy that is fundamental for the explanation of all color constancy phenomena. We experience it when looking at a curved uniformly colored surface or when changing the shape of the surface. A new concept of surface color is developed and the variety of all perceived colors is suggested to be described as a nine-dimensional set of 3 X 3 matrices corresponding to different surface colors. Examples of color matrices calculated for some colored surfaces being viewed by the standard viewer are presented and arguments supporting the concept are discussed. It is shown that the set of color matrices represents all perceived colors quite adequately.     

Impact of environment color on individual responses in public spaces of shopping malls

This study aims to explore the specific impact of a color's hue, saturation, and brightness value on people's evaluation, behavior, and emotions in the public space of existing shopping malls. Following a field investigation, color composition and distribution characteristics in the public spaces of shopping malls are summarized. In the real scenes, the hues of colors are mainly warm colors, with some supplemented by blue. The saturation of the majority colors, which are almost grayish colors, is lower than 33% and their brightness is very wide and evenly distributed. An experiment was then conducted in the laboratory, wherein photos taken and sounds recorded on-site were shown to participants; the participants were then asked to answer questionnaires based on the pleasure-arousal-dominance emotion and approach-avoidance behavior theories. The results showed that hue has a weak effect on individual responses, whereas saturation was found to have a significant effect. Moreover, the brightness difference between colors can cause a change in satisfaction, behavior intention, and emotion. Additionally, in the public spaces of shopping malls, the red color is more associated with embodied meaning, whereas the green color is more associated with referential meaning, in which different objects have significantly different influences.     

Color breakup visibility thresholds for 2‐field sequential colors

Nowadays local primary desaturation has been proved to be an effective method to suppress the color breakup for field‐sequential‐color (FSC) displays. However, little attention has been focused on the interaction between various subfield colors and the color breakup visibility. In this article, a perception experiment was conducted with the help of a 120 Hz 2‐field FSC display to investigate the thresholds of color breakup visibility along different hue directions with a constant white point in the standard color space. The experimental results show that the color breakup visibility is various when using different subfield colors for temporal combination. A relative high threshold value or low sensitivity of color breakup visibility can be observed when subfield colors are chosen along the blue‐yellow direction while becoming perceptible easily along magenta‐cyan direction. The results and analysis of our experiments are promising to optimize the performance of local primary desaturation. Meanwhile, other applications using the temporal color fusion such as tunable lighting can also benefit from the conclusion of our work to suppress the color breakup effect.     

Color separation for colored fiber blends based on the fuzzy C‐means cluster

Colored fibers can be blended in a certain proportion to achieve a specific color. It is a very hard task for the colorist to find a good recipe to meet the final product without the aid of computer. In this article, a color separation method for the colored fiber blends is discussed to substitute for some manual work. The fuzzy C‐means cluster is a way to group the color in the colored fiber blends image. The distance index, which is a key factor during the fuzzy C‐means cluster process, is calculated in the RGB color space and the HSV color space with some transformation. The final experiment result proved that the colors of each pixel in the blends' image can be replaced by corresponding cluster center associating colors in the HSV color space, and the main texture as well as the main color information about the fibers in the image is preserved. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 2012     

Study of the color characteristics of residential buildings in Shanghai

In 2018, Shanghai launched a campaign to renovate the façade of old residential areas. With the renovation of the façade of these residential buildings, problems such as chaotic colors, dull colors, and strongly conflicting colors of walls have increasingly occurred. In this article, the color data of building samples were obtained by field investigation and the color attribute grading evaluation of residential buildings was carried out by introducing evaluation factors; thus, the evaluation results of these buildings were finally obtained. Based on the analysis of the quantity and proportion of each color attribute at different evaluation levels, the color characteristics of residential buildings in Shanghai were finally summarized. Overall, Shanghai residential buildings are “warm colored” in hue, “bright” in lightness, and “partial white” in chromaticness. The research results provide theoretical support for the forward‐looking and scientific nature of color planning for residential buildings in the future and can serve as a reference for the selection of the main colors of building walls.     

Color naming experiments using 2D and 3D rendered samples

This article describes a color naming experiment using 2D and 3D rendered color samples. Conventional color naming experiments using a priori clues generally involve 2D clues such as color patches. However, in real‐world scenes, most objects have 3D shapes whose colors are affected by illumination effects such as shadows and gloss. We use 2D and 3D rendered samples as clues in the experiments, and analyze the relationship between color terms and object surfaces. First, we develop a color term collection system that can produce 218 test colors. We render the color images of a flat disk as a 2D sample and a sphere as a 3D sample on a calibrated display device. It is supposed that the 2D and 3D surfaces with the same object color are obtained under the same conditions of viewing and illumination. The results of color naming experiments show that there are differences for color terms between 2D and 3D samples. Important findings are as follows: (1) brighter color terms tend to be chosen for the 3D samples than the 2D samples, when observing achromatic colors, (2) achromatic color terms are chosen for 3D samples having low saturation, and (3) for chromatic colors, a darker color term is generally chosen in comparison to the corresponding 2D samples of the same color. These properties become more prominent by changing the illumination angle from 0° to 45° to the surface normal. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 40, 270–280, 2015     

Differences in attributes between color difference and color appearance (chroma and hue) for near‐neutral colors

Chroma‐step perception and its corresponding color difference in the same hue direction are the different attributes on color perception. The differences between them are different for different hues. Hue‐appearance step and its corresponding color difference along the same hue circle also have completely different concepts. The causes of the above two facts are clarified. The information based on various experiments and theoretical considerations are given for supporting the facts. In addition, it is clarified that the relationship on color‐appearance step and color difference has completely different characteristics between the quantitative (chroma) and the qualitative (hue) attributes of object colors. The importance of chromatic strength (CS) on hue is clarified in each of the three color attributes hue, value, and chroma. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 30, 42–52, 2005; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/col.20073     

Color appearance and color connotation models for unrelated colors

The purpose of this research is to investigate the color appearance and color connotation of unrelated colors. To investigate color appearance (i.e., brightness, colorfulness, and hue) for unrelated colors, 22 observers have answered their color appearance for 50 unrelated color stimuli using the magnitude estimation method. Perceptual data obtained by the experiment is compared with the color attributes data estimated by unrelated‐color appearance models, CAM97u and CAM02u. It is found that both models perform reasonably well but the performance of CAM02u is better than that of CAM97u. For investigating color connotation for unrelated colors, 32 observers have judged their color connotation for the 50 unrelated color stimuli using the 10 color connotation scales (i.e., “Warm – Cool,” “Heavy – Light,” “Modern – Classical,” “Clean – Dirty,” “Active – Passive,” “Hard – Soft,” Tense – Relaxed,” “Fresh – Stale,” “Masculine – feminine,” and “like – Dislike”), and semantic differential method is used for measurement. It is found that the color connotation models developed for related colors perform poorly for unrelated colors. Experimental results indicate that brightness attribute is confusing to estimate and does not affect color connotation significantly for unrelated colors. Based on the psychophysical data, new models for “Warm‐Cool”, “Heavy‐Light”, “Active‐Passive” and “Hard‐Soft” were proposed using CAM02u hue, brightness, and colorfulness. Color connotations for unrelated colors are classified into three categories, which “Color solidity,” “Color heat,” and “Color purity.” © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 40, 40–49, 2015