Essay on Effects of Color on Perception of Information

The response of individuals on the visual information they perceive may differ. However, factors influencing the perception and determining the difference in responses of individuals are not always clear. In this regard, the use of colors may have a considerable impact on the perception of the visual information by individuals. Many experiments and studies involving the use of color words printed in different colors on the white background were conducted. Basically, studies reveal different responses of individuals, when they see color words in different colors. As a result, the hypothesis arises that the visual perception of individuals may depend on the color of items individuals see. In other words, the speed and accuracy of the perception of the information depends on colors used for the presented visual information.

As a rule, the measurements are conducted through time stops, when participants of studies see the target stimuli and the time from the moment they see the stimuli and respond to them is measured. In such a way, researchers find the difference in responses of individuals to the visual information of different colors and the accuracy of its perception.

Key variables used in studies are different colors and the age, visual capability, and other capabilities of participants.

Article 1

The study conducted by Klopfer focused on the premise that individuals need longer time to read and understand stimuli in incongruent color than it does to name a stimulus of a neutral color. In the course of the study participants were shown words of different color some words were correlated to their colors. The study revealed the fact that the interference depended on the color-word similarity. Participants identified faster words that correlated to their color. Hence, Klopfer concludes that word-reading and color-naming processes interact at a conceptual level prior to response emission.

Article 2

Ikeda and other researchers (2010) focused on the study of the correlation between the word-color and the color incongruence depending on the color of the word. The researchers studied features of Stroop and reverse Stroop interference. The researchers paid a particular attention to the response modality – oral and manual responses. They involved 47 students, both men and women, in their study. They found out that the performance of Stroop interference score was considerably greater with the oral response than with the manual response. Furthermore, they found that the performance of the reverse Stroop conditions was higher than that of Stroop condition for both oral and manual responses. Finally, the reverse Stroop interference score was constant regardless of the response modality. Hence, the researcher revealed the difference in response through verbal and sensory information.

Article 3

Stroop conducted the study of verbal responses of individuals to visual stimuli of different colors. The study involved participants of the different age and gender, who were shown colored-words, while the researcher measured the time of responses. The study revealed the fact that interference in several verbal reactions differs since participants needed different amount of time to respond and to identify stimuli of different color and content. Thus, the study revealed the impact of color perception on the verbal perception and responses of individuals.

The purpose of the current study was to find out the difference in responses of participants on stimuli of different colors. The research question was whether individuals respond in a different way to visual stimuli of different colors. Twenty participants were selected at the average age of 22,35. Participants were both males and females. They were divided into ten groups of two. They were exposed to stimuli and had to response respectively to the requirements of the experiment. In the first experiment, participants had to read the written words in stimulus A) colors in black ink and stimulus C) color words in incongruent ink. In the second experiment, participants had to identify the color of the ink of stimulus C) color-words in incongruent ink and stimulus D) blocks of color. In the third experiment, participants had to say the color of the ink of stimulus B) number-words in color ink and stimulus C) color-words in incongruent ink.

The hypothesis of the study was that the visual perception of individuals may depend on the color of items individuals see.

Discussion

The study has revealed the fact that participants responded in different ways on stimuli they saw, depending on the color of the stimuli. Their responses were faster when they saw black words on the white background and slower when they saw words of incongruent color. Hence, the findings basically prove the prediction since the color does affect the perception of participants and their responses differ because of the color. These findings support findings made by Stroop (1935), Ikeda (2010), and Klopger (1996).

Conclusion

The study revealed the difference in verbal responses of individuals exposed to stimuli of different color. However, the study involved a relatively small number of participants. The further study should involve a larger number of participants of different age to find out whether age may affect the perception of stimuli of different colors.