Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!clyde!att!rutgers!ucsd!sdics!norman
From: norman@sdics.ucsd.EDU (Donald A Norman-UCSD Cog Sci Dept)
Newsgroups: comp.cog-eng
Subject: Re: Color in Screen Displays
Keywords: color, screen display, user interface, fatigue, ergonomics
Message-ID: <658@sdics.ucsd.EDU>
Date: 6 Dec 88 01:44:38 GMT
References: <2789@hound.UUCP> <1724@hp-sdd.HP.COM>
Reply-To: norman@sdics.UUCP (Donald A Norman-UCSD Cog Sci Dept)
Organization: UC San Diego Department of Cognitive Science
Lines: 34


     In article <1724@hp-sdd.HP.COM> andrea@hp-sdd.UUCP (Andrea K. Frankel)
     writes:
     ...  red (especially bright) raises the pulse and blood pressure,
     tending to produce short-term alertness (and, after an extended
     exposure, increased irritability!).  Yellow and orange tend to make
     people do  ...

Umm, gulp, the professional scientist in me, coupled with being a
professor, makes me say --- wait a moment!  There is no evidence for
these effects -- no scientific evidence, that is.  And, moreover, it
would be very difficult to get such evidence, because of the very
large numbers of variables that would need to be controlled in such
experiments.  Yes, I know all about the popular literature on color.
But just because it is popular doesn't mean it is correct.

Color clearly has effects on mood and motivation, but the effects are
apt to be subtle, to vary with multiple factors, and to differ across
people (and probaboly differ for the same person at different times).

There ARE standards for appropriate colors to be used: there will be a
panel at the CHI 89 meetings on this topic.   To the writer of the
article who was at HP -- contact wanda Smith at HP who is expert on
these matters (and who will be on the panel).

don norman

Donald A. Norman	[ danorman@ucsd.edu   BITNET: danorman@ucsd ]
Department of Cognitive Science C-015
University of California, San Diego
La Jolla, California 92093 USA

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