Context specificity of implicit preferences: the case of human preference for red.
Three experiments were conducted on color preference using a spontaneous selection paradigm with infant participants. Experiment 1 demonstrated that participants prefer red over green in a friendly laboratory environment. Experiment 2 demonstrated that participants' preference for red varies with the context in which the color is presented: Red is preferred in a hospitable context (following a happy face), but not in a hostile context (following an angry face). The opposite pattern was found for the control color green. Experiment 3 used the same context manipulation, but a second control color, gray, was added to clearly examine whether context affects preference for red only. As predicted, given a second alternative choice, context-dependent preference for red, but not green or gray, was found. These results represent the first evidence of context moderation in the color preference literature.
Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-2500, USA. maamaier@notes.cc.sunysb.edu
Markus A
MA
Maier
Petra
P
Barchfeld
Andrew J
AJ
Elliot
Reinhard
R
Pekrun
D000339:Affect; D001070:Appetitive Behavior; D001245:Association Learning; D001288:Attention; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003118:Color Perception; D004192:Discrimination, Psychological; D004644:Emotions; D005149:Facial Expression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D002666:Psychology, Child; D012931:Social Environment