Role of color in perception of attractiveness

Percept Mot Skills. 1990 Aug;71(1):151-60. doi: 10.2466/pms.1990.71.1.151.

Abstract

In this color study females reported a favorite color significantly more often than males. Males preferred bright colors significantly more than females, with a converse finding for preference for soft colors. The 276 subjects, when asked to evaluate the attractiveness of stimulus models in photographs, gave as the reason color significantly more often than style of clothing or facial expressions. Subjects significantly concurred with expert choices of recommended and nonrecommended colors in five of the six sets of photographs. This study lends credence that wearing recommended colors makes a difference in judgments of what looks best by subjects over the age of 12.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Attention*
  • Beauty*
  • Child
  • Choice Behavior
  • Color Perception*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Photography