Color Preference Study
Context does matter when it comes to color preference
Julia Ogrydziak, Principal
What do we know about color preference within different contexts? Why does the public
have such strong reactions to colors in certain situations which would not even register in
others? Why is a pink house looked at with horror and pink flowers with delight?
Within this experiment, it was shown that color choice is related to context as well as gender and design background. In addition, there is a
difference between a person's generic stated favorite color and the color they will choose in any given instance.
The trend shows a higher probability of picking from a
cluster of colors based on preference for small disposable objects, with blue as favorite. With flowers, 'naturalness' and the
color combination with the leaves are most important. With cars and electronics, we
see a trend towards particular color selection, and brand attributes take on added
importance. The most striking difference was in appliances and houses where 'traditional'
colors were chosen by a majority of supporters, and people who picked
traditionally often had violent reactions to less traditional colors.
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