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Color preference in red-green dichromats.

ABSTRACT: Around 2% of males have red-green dichromacy, which is a genetic disorder of color vision where one type of cone photoreceptor is missing. Here we investigate the color preferences of dichromats. We aim (i) to establish whether the systematic and reliable color preferences of normal trichromatic observers (e.g., preference maximum at blue, minimum at yellow-green) are affected by dichromacy and (ii) to test theories of color preference with a dichromatic sample. Dichromat and normal trichromat observers named and rated how much they liked saturated, light, dark, and focal colors twice. Trichromats had the expected pattern of preference. Dichromats had a reliable pattern of preference that was different to trichromats, with a preference maximum rather than minimum at yellow and a much weaker preference for blue than trichromats. Color preference was more affected in observers who lacked the cone type sensitive to long wavelengths (protanopes) than in those who lacked the cone type sensitive to medium wavelengths (deuteranopes). Trichromats' preferences were summarized effectively in terms of cone-contrast between color and background, and yellow-blue cone-contrast could account for dichromats' pattern of preference, with some evidence for residual red-green activity in deuteranopes' preference. Dichromats' color naming also could account for their color preferences, with colors named more accurately and quickly being more preferred. This relationship between color naming and preference also was present for trichromat males but not females. Overall, the findings provide novel evidence on how dichromats experience color, advance the understanding of why humans like some colors more than others, and have implications for general theories of aesthetics.

SUBMITTER: Alvaro L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4522756 | biostudies-other | 2015 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Project description:It is estimated that inherited red-green color deficiency, which involves both the protan and deutan deficiency types, is common in men. For red-green defective observers, some reddish colors appear desaturated and brownish, unlike those seen by normal observers. Despite its prevalence, few studies have investigated the effects that red-green color deficiency has on the psychological properties of colors (color emotions). The current study investigated the influence of red-green color deficiency on the following six color emotions: cleanliness, freshness, hardness, preference, warmth, and weight. Specifically, this study aimed to: (1) reveal differences between normal and red-green defective observers in rating patterns of six color emotions; (2) examine differences in color emotions related to the three cardinal channels in human color vision; and (3) explore relationships between color emotions and color naming behavior. Thirteen men and 10 women with normal vision and 13 men who were red-green defective performed both a color naming task and an emotion rating task with 32 colors from the Berkeley Color Project (BCP). Results revealed noticeable differences in the cleanliness and hardness ratings between the normal vision observers, particularly in women, and red-green defective observers, which appeared mainly for colors in the orange to cyan range, and in the preference and warmth ratings for colors with cyan and purple hues. Similarly, naming errors also mainly occurred in the cyan colors. A regression analysis that included the three cone-contrasts (i.e., red-green, blue-yellow, and luminance) as predictors significantly accounted for variability in color emotion ratings for the red-green defective observers as much as the normal individuals. Expressly, for warmth ratings, the weight of the red-green opponent channel was significantly lower in color defective observers than in normal participants. In addition, the analyses for individual warmth ratings in the red-green defective group revealed that luminance cone-contrast was a significant predictor in most red-green-defective individuals. Together, these results suggest that red-green defective observers tend to rely on the blue-yellow channel and luminance to compensate for the weak sensitivity of long- and medium-wavelength (L-M) cone-contrasts, when rating color warmth.

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Color preference in red-green dichromats.

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