Color Preferences Reveal Your Personality

by Geraldo Fuentes

Note: If you missed the first part of this feature where the actual color test is
given, please go to the test now. This article will make more sense and your test
will be more spontaneous and accurate if you do.

Many people wrote to us about the Color Preference Test, letting us know that
the results were remarkably accurate. We also received numerous requests for
additional information on this test and some explanation of how it works.

According to psychologists, the colors have deep rooted psychological

significance. Their explanation takes us back to a time when humans were living
in the wild. Daylight, symbolized by bright yellow, signified a new day, a bright
beginning and a welcome relief to the deep blue or black of night, which carried
with it the fear of the unknown and the time to hide and bundle up in animal skins
for a period of resting and recharging. The green of vegetation promised
nurturing in the form of food and medicinal plants and came to represent the a
degree of control over nature. Red, especially the brownish hue that he selected,
was to represent the color of blood and was therefore linked with the hunt and
aggression.

In more recent times, marketing and package designers noted that sugar and
other sweet products did not sell in packaging that was green while cosmetics
suffered the same fate when associated with the color brown. In open ended
tests, green was associated with astringent or tartness while blue seemed to best
convey sweetness.

Modern dyes and tints now allow for a wide array of colors unknown in nature.
This is why the instructions warn of association with things like clothing and
common objects. Ideally, the colors will have appeal (or the lack of appeal)
based on their association with the other colors in the set and this is the most
reliable way to "read" our unconscious and inherent interpretations.

Another question that was asked related to color blindness. Psychologists

addressed this in his work by stating that the results of the test were not
influenced by this aberration. According to scientists, since a person with color
blindness will unconsciously react to the subtle variations in hue and chroma, the
results should be the same. This fact was later confirmed in experiments
conducted by L. Steinke (Farbpsychologische Untersuchungen mit dem Luscher-
test bei angeborenen Farbsinnstrorungen, University Eye Clinic, Basel, 1960).

The significance of the Eight Positions:

Since we have previously confined our analysis of color preference to the "short
test" we will describe the first and last colors in this article. Please keep in mind
that a more detailed analysis of each position and color is possible but is beyond
the scope of this introduction to color theory.

Position One is the color "most preferred" and represents a "turning towards" or
modus operandi of the person choosing it. It is the means by which one seeks to
achieve the desired result or state of being. An example would be a selection of
the dark blue, which as previously described, represents the night and the time to
rest and prepare for sleep. A selection of this color as the "most preferred" would
then indicate that the person choosing dark blue was seeking to attain a state of
calmness.

Position Eight is the "least preferred" color and represents elements that the
person choosing this color is seeking to avoid or is "turning away from." With
dark blue in this position, for example, the element of "calmness" is being
suppressed and will remain unsatisfied because the individual is coping with a
situation in which harmony and calm appear either impossible to attain or appear
to be unimportant in the context of current life situations.

An easy interpretation would be to say that position one is the state that is being
sought while position eight is the state that is being avoided.

The Interpretation of Specific Colors:

There are four Primary Psychological Colors: Dark-Blue, Blue-Green, Orange-
Red and Bright Yellow.

Dark Blue represents "Depth of Feeling" and it has emotional correspondence

with tranquillity, calmness, recharging, contentment, tenderness, unification,
sensitivity, love and affection. It denotes primary concern for self.

Blue-Green represents "Elasticity of Will" and corresponds to persistence,

resistance to change, self-assertion, obstinacy, possessiveness and positive self-
esteem. It is also associated with concern for self.

Orange-Red represents "Force of Will" and corresponds to desire, excitability,

domination, sexual interests, aggression, controlled passion and autonomy. It
also denotes concern for others over self interests.

Bright Yellow represents "Spontaneity" and corresponds to exhilaration,

originality, expectancy and variability and the desire to expand and be active. It
also denotes concern for others over self interests.

There are four so-called Auxiliary Colors: Violet, Brown, Black and Grey. These
colors require an explanation. Black and Grey are actually not colors at all but
represent the negation of color. Violet is a mixture of Dark-Blue and Orange-Red,
while Brown is actually a mixture of Orange-Red and Black.

Violet attempts to fully unify the impulsive conquest of red and the gentle
surrender of blue. This is a mystical, magical color, that represents intuitive and
sensitive understanding of the unreal. It is the preferred color of almost 75
percent of pre-adolescent children. Oddly, it is also preferred by pregnant women
and people with hyper-thyroidism and homosexuals of both genders. In short, it
can be considered to be a desire for mystic intimacy or understanding.

Brown represents sensation as it applies to the bodily senses. It indicates either

a need for or a hopeless forfeit of body comfort, depending on its position. This
was the "most preferred" color in displaced persons after World War II. Its
association with the earthen colors signifies the need for roots or belonging,
insecurity or being in a situation in which an individual feels unable to cope.
Usually found in the last positions ("least preferred"), brown is significant if it is
nearer to the first position and usually indicates a strong need to overcome a bad
situation which is causing extreme discomfort, both physical and emotional.

Black represents the absolute boundary beyond which life ceases. Black as a
"preferred color" means that the person choosing it is rejecting and renouncing
everything out of stubborn protest against a situation in which he feels hopeless.
It is seen as a rebellion against fate and a revolt against life as the only means
for hope. When black occupies the "least preferred" place, it is a statement that
one does not want to relinquish anything or give up any ground. This is
statistically the most common color in the last position.

In part three of this discussion, we will attempt to illustrate the significance of the
intermediate color positions and their interpretations. We welcome your
comments and ideas. Please address any inquiries to myristicin@hotmail.com.

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üscher Color Diagnostic

This is the original Website of the Lüscher-Color-Diagnostic®.

The original colors and forms of the Lüscher-Color-Test and the original Lüscher-Color-
Diagnostic® are protected by international law.

Every other color test is not from Prof. Max Lüscher and the original Lüscher-Colors and text are
faked.

The Lüscher-Color-Diagnostic® measures a person's psychophysical state, his or her ability to

withstand stress, to perform, and to communicate. It uncovers the cause of psychological stress,
which can lead to physical symptoms. Using 5015 precise definitions, the selections from among
these pre-determined test colors measure the state of 23 personality traits, some of which lie
outside the realm of the conscious.
Because the color selections are guided in an unconscious manner, they reveal the person as he
or she really is, and not as he or she perceives him- or herself, or as he or she would like to be
perceived, which occurs when questions are asked directly or by questionnaires.
The results of the Lüscher-Color-Diagnostic® (ca 5 pages) contains indications pertaining to
personal assessment and special, professional recommendations as to how psychological stress
and the resulting physical symptoms can be avoided. It also offers additional information for
verbal and homeopathic therapy.

What the Lüscher-Color-Diagnostics ® and Therapy can do

 Non-verbal, fast method about 5 minutes.

 Objectivity: No subjective factors either when administering the test or during its
diagnostic evaluation.
 Direct and differentiated insight into the causes and psycho-vegetative structure of
symptoms or complaints.
 Differentiates between underlying constitution and momentary disposition.
 Provides the physician with information from the patient’s history.
 "Structural therapeutic strategy" for psychotherapy.
 Suggestions for homeopathic remedies.
 Provides the physical therapist with useful information. Underlying cause of the pain in a
particular region.
 Suggestions for personal assessment.
 Computer-assisted diagnosis
 The basic Lüscher Test involves choosing the eight colours, Violet, Yellow, Brown,
Grey, Black, Red, Green, Blue, in order of preference and without reference to external
considerations, e.g. whether that colour would look nice as an item of clothing or be
 suitable for a pair of curtains. According to Lüscher, this allows a true reflection of your
colour preferences and needs.
 Once the selection has been made the position of each colour (1-8) is analysed to reveal
the main personality traits of the respondent at the time of the selection, with the colours
placed in first and eighth position being the most significant.
 Blue (1) - Represents "Depth of Feeling" and is concentric, passive, incorporative,
heteronomous, sensitive, perceptive, and unifying. Its affective aspects are tranquility,
contentment, tenderness, and love and affection.

 Green (2) - Represents "Elasticity of Will" and is concentric, passive, defensive,

autonomous, retentive, possessive, and immutable. Its affective aspects are persistence,
self-assertion, obstinacy, and self-esteem.

 Red (3) - Represents "Force of Will" and is ex-centric, active, offensive-aggressive,

autonomous, locomotor, competitive, and operative. Its affective aspects are desire,
excitability, domination, and sexuality.

 Yellow (4) - Represents "Spontaneity" and is ex-centric, active, projective,

heteronomous, expansive, aspiring, and investigatory. Its affective aspects are variability,
expectancy, originality, and exhilaration.

 Violet (5) - Mixture of red and blue, and therefore has properties of both. Represents
"Identification" and looks for reality in everything thought and desired. Violet is
enchantment and wants a magical relationship.

 Brown (6) - Relates to bodily senses. Its placement in the row indicates the body's
condition.

 Black (7) - Expresses the idea of nothingness, as it is the negation of colour itself. It
represents renunciation, the ultimate surrender of relinquishment.

 Grey (0) - Being that it has no colour, not dark nor light, it represents non-involvement
and concealment.

 Applications of the Lüscher Colour Test include, use by some in the medical profession
as an aid to diagnosis of stress related ailments.
 The result of such colour tests suggest that colour preference may vary with age and even
educational background. Young children tend to choose red first then blue, a trend which
is often reversed during childhood, along with general acceptance of less bright, more
muted colours, although in the case of the less well educated a preference for the bright
primary colours often continues into adulthood.

A marked preference for bright colours is often expressed by the elderly, although this is thought to be
linked to a decrease in sensitivity of the cones in the eye.
In the 1940s, the Russian scientist S V Krakov provided support for Lüscher's theories by
establishing that the colour red stimulates the sympathetic part of the autonomic nervous system,
while blue stimulates the parasympathetic part. These findings were confirmed in 1958 by
Robert Gerard of the USA, who found that red was disturbing to anxious or tense subjects, while
blue had a calming effect. Red produced feelings of arousal and blue produced feelings of calm,
tranquility and well being.
  

The discovery that blood pressure increases under red light and decreases under blue light led Gerard to
suggest that psychophysiological activation increases with wavelength from blue to red.

These early therapeutic applications of coloured light were the basis of many future experiments and
formed the foundations of various theories. Coloured light is still used today as a colour therapy
treatment, along with a whole host of other methods.

To learn more about colour therapy, click here.