CHILDRENS EMOTIONAL ASSOCIATIONS WITH COLORS

In this study children's emotional associations with colors were inves tigated. Sixty children (30 girls, 30 boys), equally divided into grou ps of 5-year-olds and 6 1/2-year-olds, were asked their favorite color and were then shown nine different colors, one at a time and in a ran dom order. For each color, children were asked, ''How does (the color) make you feel?'' All children were able to verbally express an emotio nal response to each color, and 69% of children's emotional responses were positive (e.g., happiness, excitement). Responses also demonstrat ed distinct color-emotion associations. Children had positive reaction s to bright colors (e.g., pink, blue, red) and negative emotions for d ark colors (e.g., brown, black, gray). Children's emotional reactions to bright colors became increasingly positive with age, and girls in p articular showed a preference for brighter colors and a dislike for da rker colors. Boys were more likely than girls were to have positive em otional associations with dark colors. Potential sources for children' s color-emotion concepts, such as gender-related and idiosyncratic exp eriences, are discussed.