Gender colours

…your choice of hues: study

A study released today reveals that the long-held stereotypes about men’s and women’s favourite colours have some scientific basis.

CBC News

A study in the Aug. 21 issue of Current Biology reports some of the first conclusive evidence of a gender divide over favourite colours. Indeed, the researchers found that more women than men really do prefer pink – or at least a redder shade of blue.

“Although we expected to find sex differences, we were surprised at how robust they were, given the simplicity of our test,” said Anya Hurlbert of Newcastle University.

The test asked young men and women to choose, as quickly as possible, their preferred colour from each of a series of paired, coloured rectangles. Results showed blue is a universal favourite, but that tastes still differ between the sexes.

“Females have a preference for the red end of the red-green axis, and this shifts their colour preference slightly away from blue towards red, which tends to make pinks and lilacs the most preferred colours in comparison with others,” Hurlbert said.

The researchers found the divide predictable enough that they can now usually tell the sex of a participant based on their favourite-colour choices.

To clarify whether the results were more cultural than biological, the researchers tested a small group of Chinese people against the other 171 British Caucasian participants. The results were similar, strengthening the idea that the sex differences might be biological.

Hurlbert theorized the female preference for red could date from humans’ hunter-gatherer days when women – the primary gatherers – would have benefited from an ability to key in on ripe, red fruits.

“Evolution may have driven females to prefer reddish colours – reddish fruits, healthy, reddish faces,” Hurlbert said. “Culture may exploit and compound this natural female preference.”

Hurlbert also offered ideas as to the universal preference for blue, but said it’s mostly speculation.

“I would favour evolutionary arguments again here,” she said. “Going back to our savannah days, we would have a natural preference for a clear blue sky, because it signalled good weather. Clear blue also signals a good water source.”

The researchers plan to test infants as well to gain further insight into colour preferences.