Brain response to color stimuli: an EEG study with nonlinear approach

Color perception is a major guiding factor in the evolutionary process of human civilization, but most of the neurological background of the same are yet unknown. This work attempts to address this area with an EEG based neuro-cognitive study on response of brain to different color stimuli. With respect to a Grey baseline seven colors of the VIBGYOR were shown to 16 participants with normal color vision and corresponding EEG signals from different lobes (Frontal, Occipital & Parietal) were recorded. In an attempt to quantify the brain response while watching these colors, the corresponding EEG signals were analysed using two of the latest state of the art non-linear techniques (MFDFA and MFDXA) of dealing complex time series. MFDFA revealed that for all the participants the spectral width, and hence the complexity of the EEG signals, reaches a maximum while viewing color Blue, followed by colors Red and Green in all the brain lobes. MFDXA, on the other hand, suggests a lower degree of inter and intra lobe correlation while watching the VIBGYOR colors compared to baseline Grey, hinting towards a post processing of visual information. We hope that along with the novelty of methodologies, the unique outcomes of this study may leave a long term impact in the domain of color perception research.

Exploring the Implicit Link Between Red and Aggressiveness as Well as Blue and Agreeableness

Previous studies have found a link between red and aggressive behavior. For example, athletes who wear red uniforms in sports are considered to have a competitive advantage. So far, most previous studies have adopted self-report methods, which have low face validity and were easily influenced by the social expectations. Therefore, the study used two implicit methods to further explore the association between red and aggressiveness. A modified Stroop task was used in Experiment 1 to probe college students' differences between "congruent" tasks (i.e., red-aggressiveness and blue-agreeableness) and "incongruent" tasks (i.e., red-agreeableness and blue-aggressiveness). Result showed that participants responded more quickly to the congruent tasks than the incongruent tasks. Then, in order to adapt to the competitive context, Experiment 2 used an implicit association test with photos of athletes as the stimulus to college students and athletes to evaluate "congruent" tasks (i.e., red uniform photo-aggressiveness and blue uniform photo-agreeableness) as well as "incongruent" tasks (i.e., red uniform photo-agreeableness and blue uniform photo-aggressiveness), respectively. According to the results, both college students and athletes respond faster to congruent tasks than to incongruent tasks. Besides, athletes' reactions to the red-aggressiveness association are faster than college students, which may relate to the athletes' professional experience. The athletes may be more aggressive and impulsive. Overall, the study has attempted to examine the association between red and aggressiveness through implicit methods, but in the future, researches are need to find a deep association from brain mechanism aspect.

Sweating the connection of uniform colours and success in sport: No evidence for the red win effect in elite women's NCAA basketball

Efforts to research the link between uniform colours and performance in sport have gained momentum in recent years demonstrating a red superiority effect. The current investigation identified a gender gap in participation between laboratory experimental studies of performance, which are dominated by women participants, and archival game analysis research, which is almost exclusively conducted in elite men's sports. To address this disparity, we conducted the first dedicated exploration of uniform colours with women's American collegiate basketball teams during the national annual tournament (NCAA) in a period spanning eight seasons (2012-19). In contrast to the evidence from experimental research, we failed to detect an effect and the results remained null when several colours were tested and ranking was considered. Based on the findings, we conclude with mounting confidence that uniform colours do not exert influence over winning in relatively long-duration, low aggression team sports with substantial physical contact. We discuss the results in relationship to the colour-in-context theory (Elliot, A. J., & Maier, M. A. (2012). Colour-in-context theory. In Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 45, pp. 61-125). Academic Press.) and highlight its shortcomings pertaining to sex as a moderator.

The Effect of Color on the Use of Electronic Body Protectors in Taekwondo Matches

This study investigated the relationship between the color protector and success in taekwondo combats in the qualification championships, when electronic body protectors were used. Moreover, it analyzed the confounding effect of a participant being a top-ranked athlete in the 2012 London Olympic Games, in a sample of 462 matches. Results from the entire sample showed a non-significant relationship between the combat outcome and the winner's color electronic protector. At the level of the tournament, the results showed a significant relationship between wearing a red electronic protector and winning the combat in the Asian and the European qualification tournaments. For gender and weight categories, there was no clear color effect. A significant association was, however, found between wearing red and winning the match in the female featherweight category. The inclusion of electronic body protectors and a counterbalanced seed-condition seem to be effective for controlling the effect of the protector's color on the outcomes of combats.

Color psychology: effects of perceiving color on psychological functioning in humans

Color is a ubiquitous perceptual stimulus that is often considered in terms of aesthetics. Here we review theoretical and empirical work that looks beyond color aesthetics to the link between color and psychological functioning in humans. We begin by setting a historical context for research in this area, particularly highlighting methodological issues that hampered earlier empirical work. We proceed to overview theoretical and methodological advances during the past decade and conduct a review of emerging empirical findings. Our empirical review focuses especially on color in achievement and affiliation/attraction contexts, but it also covers work on consumer behavior as well as food and beverage evaluation and consumption. The review clearly shows that color can carry important meaning and can have an important impact on people's affect, cognition, and behavior. The literature remains at a nascent stage of development, however, and we note that considerable work on boundary conditions, moderators, and real-world generalizability is needed before strong conceptual statements and recommendations for application are warranted. We provide suggestions for future research and conclude by emphasizing the broad promise of research in this area.

Can Uniform Color Color Aggression? Quasi-Experimental Evidence From Professional Ice Hockey

Is uniform color related to aggressive behavior? Prior research has produced mixed results comparing the effects of black (vs. colored) uniforms on aggressive penalties in the National Hockey League (NHL), and the effect of white (vs. colored) uniforms remains unexamined. Luckily, the NHL has conducted multiple quasi-experiments with uniform (jersey) color over time. To examine the color–aggression link, the authors analyzed the last 25 seasons of NHL penalty-minute data (649 seasons from 30 teams collapsed across 52,098 games). When teams wore black jerseys, they were penalized more than when they did not ( d = 1.19; Study 1). When teams switched to wearing colored jerseys at home games, they were penalized more than when they wore white jerseys at home games ( d = 0.83; Study 2). Collectively, these quasi-experimental findings suggest that black jerseys are associated with more aggression and that white jerseys are associated with less. The authors discuss possible causes for these color-aggression effects.