Why do we have color preferences?

Clothes shopping, car shopping, a good pair of shoes, what to wear today, everyday we are surrounded by choice of color.

Now, I'm not gonna go into the science of why we see certain colors or the difference between color in light and color in objects and how it all works when we see color. Basically the light of the color is bouncing off our eyes and then we see that color. There's an episode about color on the Magic School Bus show and I'm pretty sure you can watch it on YouTube. Never mind you're not a kid if you're not. It's such a good explanation of how it all works.

Back to choice of color.

Why do we choose certain colors? Why do we like certain colors? Why do we have color preferences?

This gets into the psychology of colors. Why do I like blue? Why does my friend like black? Why do some people find certain colors appealing and others don't?

I often think when I choose a color for clothes or for items like a computer mouse, why do I always look for blue? I like blue but why do I like blue?

Harmonious Orcas by Christian Lassen

Well, it's a cool color and it's calm and maybe it reminds me of the ocean which I like. I also like dolphins and Christian Lassen and those are also related to the color blue. But I don't just like any blue. It has to either be a pastel or a darker blue like indigo or something that looks like it could be the color of space with sparkling stars. Evening sky blue. Or a darker kind of light blue. Think the Crayola crayon called "Robin's Egg Blue" or "Sky Blue".

Yes, I like these blues. Very nice :)

Are these all based on positive experiences I've had?

An article in Psychology Today says so. The more positive the experience associated with the certain color is, the more we tend to like that color. Makes sense, right? People who are afraid of looking at blood feeling squeamish at the mere sight of a small paper cut, might not really like the color red. But say you are someone who associates red with Santa Claus and getting presents at Christmas in your childhood. Maybe red becomes a favorable color then.

The article talks about a study and states some interesting conclusion after a series of tests on people asking them to choose what color they like, to associate what object the color reminds them of and so on. So the conclusion is, "color preferences derive from our preference for the objects that typically have these colors" (Psychology Today: Color Preference article).

I disagree with this. It's like the chicken and the egg question of which came first. How can they conclude the object comes first? Even if that object didn't exist, we can still have a color preference.

People who like orange, let's say there will be something really nice in the color orange ten years from now. But it hasn't been created yet. Still, there are people who like orange today. You'll have to do the study every single year to make the conclusion hold.

There was a time when Skype or Facebook didn't exist and Twitter wasn't a thing. Interestingly, Skype, Facebook, and Twitter have a blue-shaded icon. But even before finding these objects favorable, I liked blue. This was probably the same for other people, too.

Also, another point. Some people who hate blue, might still like it now because of Skype, Facebook, or Twitter.

Now what are you going to say for yourselves, hmm? How can color preferences derive from our preference for the object that has these colors? That even goes against the fact that there are people who dislike red. And what if there were people that hated red because of blood but loved apples?

Vampires, I know they don't exist, might love the color red but hate apples. Yet, they love to drink blood.

What I'm saying is that the conclusion in the article does not hold because:

A. What if the object didn't exist?
B. What if we preferred a color but didn't like the object it is associated with?

The article even mentions chocolate milk. Although dirt may not be favorable, chocolate is. Yet, they are both brown or in the brown category.

It might be hard to believe but this is called Dirt Pudding.
It's made of chocolate, don't worry.

To try to get some answers that make logical sense, I found another website on color preference and personalities. Apparently, color preference reflects personality. Let's see if they're right.

I like blue. Here's what they (think they) know about me.

"People who prefer blue usually dislike confrontations and play the role of the diplomat in order to avoid continued conflict. Blue is also the color of the throat chakra, centered around the thyroid gland, and it is believed that personalities preferring blue are good orators, capable of giving a good speech." (the website)

WELL, no one likes confrontations so that's wrong. Play the role of the diplomat? As in willingly involve myself into conflict? Nope. Am I a good public speaker? Nope. Although I don't mind doing it, I wouldn't necessarily want to. I'm a shy person :)

Now, that was just blue in general. Here's what they say about azure-blue likers.

"Azure Blue -- This is the favorite color of people who are content with life, as long as it has some specific goals. People who prefer this color have the attitude that "the journey is better than the destination" and they enjoy the quest so much that, if they achieve it, they quickly invent a new goal to pursue." (the website)

So, I suppose they are more or less right about me here. I am content with life overall and I do enjoy the process of something challenging (like research or writing) and after finishing, I move on to the next thing.

BUT, it's not because I think the journey is better than the goal. I'm a collector. I like to have a lot of something and feel accomplished whether its beanie babies or short story projects. So the goal matters as much as the journey.

I wouldn't just try to achieve something just for the sake of the challenge to get there. That would just be a waste of time.

One more color: Magenta

"Magenta -- Psychologically magenta is favored by arbitrators who find it distressing to tolerate indecision in others. The individuals who favor this color are good at holding in their feelings and they often appear shy, but they are remarkably patient." (the website)

This color is me as well. I don't like people who are indecisive. Sometimes I get frustrated with people who won't say something straightforward. If you don't like the way I do something, just tell me! If you take me out on a date, don't be like, "Oh, I dunno what we should do...you decide."

Aaaaagh! I thought you were taking me out. Not the other way around!
I didn't know I had to plan your date with me! :0

I'm also shy. But sometimes I think it's hard for people to tell? I tend to try hard not to be shy because I don't like awkward silences unless it's the other person's fault for causing it by saying something that doesn't make sense or is irrelevant.

But, despite all that, I'm also a patient person. People that aren't patient probably can't take writing about a color they don't like trying to make the reader believe it's another color they do like.

See what I did there?

I DON'T LIKE PINK and any color related to it. Although for clothes, I can tolerate a really light pink but I dislike magenta. Too pink.

I like the a mixture of the color "blush" and "crepe".
I can tolerate "ballet slipper", "flamingo", and "rose".
I don't consider "salmon", "peach", or "coral" to be in the pink/red family.
And what is brown doing there? "Rosewood" may have "rose" in its name,
but it's not in the pink/red family. This is the longest caption in history.

So, although the color applies to me, I don't like that color so what does that say, hmm? I'm debunking all theories on color psychology here. Someone give me some answers!

*cue frustrated fox again*

Aaaaagh! :0

Obviously saying that we prefer a color because we prefer a certain object associated with that color IS NOT TRUE.

Obviously color preference doesn't reflect our personalities either. Otherwise I would like magenta but it's not a favorable color for me.

So why do we like certain colors?

Here are my theories (because no one else has a clue): 

We like certain colors because, 
these colors have been unconsciously present in our babyhood times. We unconsciously are surrounded by some of these colors and early on they are embedded into our brains as "colors I like".

We like certain colors because,
it's genetics.

We like certain colors because,
although each of us has the same physical structure, our eyes are genetically different. There are personal traits in our eyes that respond to certain colors favorably.


CONCLUSION

yet, at least. Nothing to see. Move along.

I might redo this article. But not today.

See ya later, alligators.