WEARING BLACK CLOTHES - THE IMPACT OF OFFENDERS AND SUSPECTS CLOTHINGON IMPRESSION-FORMATION

People usually associate the colour black with evil, aggression and ba dness. It was hypothesized that this association would influence peopl e's perception, i.e. it was expected that offenders and suspects who w ore black clothes would be seen as more aggressive than those who wore light-coloured clothes. In two experiments the colour of clothing of offenders and suspects was manipulated and the effect of this manipula tion on observers' perception was investigated. The results indicated strong support for the hypothesis. The practical implications of the f indings are discussed.