Blue is the colour… or is Orange Better?

The aesthetics of a work environment may be the most unquantifiable aspect when it comes to understanding comfort and productivity in the office. But one element of the aesthetic remit has been the subject of many studies over the years, and that’s colour.

Colour provokes both conscious and subconscious reactions and can influence behaviour, comfort and desires. But it’s not that black and white. Upbringing, nationality and fashion all affect the perception of colour. So here are a few statistics to colour your thoughts:

Research reveals that a person makes a subconscious judgement about a person, environment or product within the first ninety seconds of initial viewing and that between 62% and 90% of all that assessment is based on colour alone. (Institute for color research).

It has been calculated that colour increases brand recognition by 80%.
Even though yellow is considered an optimistic colour, it has been observed that people are more likely to lose their tempers and babies are more likely to cry in yellow rooms.
The colour orange stimulates activity and appetite and encourages socialising. San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge is painted in Deluxe International Orange.
Blue is an appetite suppressant. This goes back to when we needed to detect dangerous foods. Very few natural blue foods exist and usually denotes something bad or poisonous and to be avoided.
Surveys show that blue is the colour most preferred by men.
Blue is also the most popular colour for corporate branding.
And all shades of blue encourage easy communication, invite contact and promote interaction.
Green has a soothing effect on people and it has been shown to alleviate depression, nervousness and anxiety.
Green also has contradictory implications. In some cultures it symbolises hope and growth but in others death, sickness and demons.
Black isn’t really a colour but more the absence of colour and is therefore linked to the unknown and unseen.
Black also implies weight. A black object appears to be heavier than a white one of the same size. More shades of white are available commercially than any other colour.
White also aids mental clarity and encourages the clearance of clutter and obstacles.

We like to link feelings and mood with colour, (green with envy, red mist of rage) and these associations can influence how an individual reacts to an environment too. Whether your culture or life experiences mean you believe a specific colour to be good or bad, colour should be considered in terms of energy. It has been noted many times in experiments that blind people are capable of differentiating between colours purely through their fingertips and that this ability can even be learned. Colour is the most powerful of communication tools and should therefore be chosen with care. But remember colour associations can change and colour combinations also alter the mood, perception and overall effect of a workspace.

So what’s black and white and read all over? The FreeThinking.work blog of course.