Summary by Tiffany Harrison and Amanda Lernor

Summary of:

Elliot, A., & Niesta, D. (2008, November). Romantic red: Red enhances men's attraction to women. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95(5), 1150-1164.

Summary by Tiffany Harrison and Amanda Lernor

For Dr. Mills’ Psych 310, Fall 2008

The current study hypothesized that the color red will lead men to perceive woman as being more physically attractive and more sexually desirable. It is believed that red carries the meaning of sex, romance, love, and lust. This implication of the color leads us to refer to this meaning as the red-sex link. The red-sex link can be derived from two sources: society and biology. From a societal perspective we associate red as being the popular color to represent love at Valentines Day. More so, women apply red lipstick or wear a red dress so they can be perceived as being more desirable and sexually available. The second source in which the red-sex link emerged is from biology. When a female primate nears ovulation, different parts of their bodies (e.g. genitals) display red coloring due to elevated estrogen levels. The reasons for this occurrence is debatable, but there is a consensus that it is designed to attract males and inform them that they a sexually available. As it relates to humans, woman who are near ovulation wear clothing that is more revealing and sexually appealing. With that said, women also tend to become more sexually aroused at this time which results in blushing apparent in the cheeks, neck, and face. This is may be caused by their increased excitation

Five experiments were completed in this study to test whether men preferred woman who were associated with the color red more so than when woman were associated with a neutral color. In the first experiment twenty-seven undergraduate males were presented with a black and white picture of an averagely attractive woman on either a white or red background. The men had 5s to look at the picture and then complete a questionnaire, which was presented on the back of the picture. The questionnaire consisted of questions that assessed how attractive the participants found the woman to be. They were then asked, on the questionnaire, to address different factors that influenced their judgment of the woman. The results showed that there was a main effect for color such that men in the red condition perceived woman to be more attractive than did men in the white condition. Results also showed that men are not consciously aware that color plays a role in determining how attractive they perceive a woman to be because it was color was rated as having the least amount of impact on men’s judgment. Results from the first experiment supported the hypothesis that “the color red leads men to view woman as more attractive and more sexually desirable” (Elliot & Niesta, 2008).

In the second experiment, both men and women rated other women who were presented in a black and white photograph on either a red or white background. Researchers were interested to see if the results from the first experiment held true for women rating other women as well. According to past research, both men and woman should be affected by the stimulus and rate the women associated with the red background as being more attractive. However, only men should be affected by the stimulus if red exhibits a sexual connotation. Similar to the first experiment, participants were presented with a photograph of a woman on a red or white background and asked to rate her attractiveness. The same questionnaire from the first experiment was used. Once again the hypothesis was confirmed. “Men who viewed a woman on a red relative to white background perceived her to be more attractive” (Elliot & Niesta, 2008). The stimuli had no affect on woman.

In the third experiment males, specifically heterosexual and bisexual males were the only test subjects as the effect of red compared to a different achromatic color, gray, was examined. As in the first two experiments, perceived attractiveness was measured with the red condition in comparison to the gray condition. In addition, sexual attraction was examined and it was predicted that the effect of red would “not only influence perceptions of attractiveness, but would also influence sexual attraction” (Elliot & Niesta, 2008). Lastly, overall likeability was examined but it was predicted that the color red would not influence this at all. The test subjects were presented with a black and white picture of an averagely attractive woman on either a gray or red background. Perceived attractiveness was assessed by asking the question, “how attractive do you think this person is?” where 1= not at all and 9=extremely. Sexual attraction was measured by asking the question, “how much do you find this person sexually desirable?” with the same scale as the previous question. Finally, perceived likeability was measured using a series of questions that focus on the target person’s positive characteristics such as honesty using the same scale. The results showed that participants in the red condition found the target to be more attractive, sexually desirable and wanted to engage in more sexual behavior with the target women than did those in the gray condition. To finish, as predicted the color red did not have any effect on the perceived likeability of the target. On the whole, as in the previous experiments participants were unaware that the experiment focused on color and attraction as color was viewed as having the least amount of impact compared to facial expression and dress in the awareness probe.

In the fourth experiment thirty-seven male undergraduates were test subjects as the effect of red was compared to the chromatic color green. The color green was chosen as a “conservative contrast to red” as it has a propensity for positive connotations such as the green in traffic lights meaning, “go.” In addition to perceived attractiveness and sexual attraction being examined, perceived kindness and intelligence was measured; as according to Buss, kindness and intelligence are the two characteristics that men and women value most in a mate. It was predicted that red would have an effect on perceived attractiveness and sexual attraction but would not effect male perceptions on kindness and intelligence. In order to measure perceived kindness and intelligence the questions, “how nice do you think this person is?” and “how highly educated do you think this person is?” were asked using the same scale found in the previous experiments. Furthermore, the results indicated that the participants in the red condition found the target to be more attractive, sexually desirable and wanted to engage in more sexual behavior with her than the green condition. As in the previous experiment, red did not have an effect on perceived kindness and intelligence, plus the participants, once again were unaware that the experiment was focused on color and attraction.

In the final experiment, the effect of the color red was compared to the color blue, as blue is found to be the most commonly preferred color in young adults and adults. Along with the color changing there were a few more modifications made to the experiment as behavioral intentions regarding dating and willingness to spend money on a date were measured. Unlike the previous experiments, in which the color was presented as the background of the photograph, in this one the color presentation was transferred to the shirt of the target woman. It was predicted that along with red affecting perceptions of attractiveness and sexual desire, it would also make it more likely that a male would want to date and spend money on the target woman. In order to assess the dating scenarios, the twenty-three male undergraduate participants were asked if they had seen this person on a computer dating website, would you ask her out? Participants responded by rating this on a scale from 1 to 9 as in previous experiments. In order to determine if the participant would spend money on a date with the target woman, a scenario was presented that stated, “Imagine that you are going on a date with this person and have $100 in your wallet. How much money would you be likely to spend on your date” (Elliot & Niesta, 2008)? The participants responded using the scale from 1 to 9 again, with each number increasing in $10 increments. As predicted, the participants that viewed the target woman in the red shirt rather than the blue shirt found her to be more attractive, more sexually desirable and would be more likely to ask her on a date and spend money on her.

Overall, the color red seems to affect perceived attractiveness, sexual attraction, and dating and spending intentions, but the red effect was only present for men and not women. It has been shown that women’s attractiveness tends to concentrate on physical characteristics such as facial symmetry, but with this study it has been made known that a nonphysical factor such as the color red could impact women’s appeal to men. One thing the researchers were unsure of would be if the red effect would have the same impact for highly attractive women, as a ceiling effect could exist, where nothing else would be needed to induce maximum male attraction. The data collected in this experiment could potentially be very valuable for men and women in the mating game, the fashion industry, and the advertising and marketing industry amongst many others. The preferred explanation for the red effect that the researchers would come up with is that it is “the product of a biologically based signal system that is both reinforced and extended by societal conditioning” (Elliot & Niesta, 2008). Clearly, more research on this topic needs to be done as color represents a type of language within different species and could help in the study of basic approach and avoidance methods.

Outline:

1. Hypothesis
2. Red leads men to view woman as more attractive/sexually desirable
3. Men are unaware of this effect

1. Red-Sex link
2. Societal use of red
3. In early rituals it symbolizes fertility
4. In literature its associated with female sexuality/availability
5. Biology
6. Female primates display of red genitals-nearing ovulation
7. Elevated estrogen levels enhance vascularization
8. Effect for both primate and human females
9. Implications of Red-Sex link
10. Perceived physical attractiveness
11. Judgment of targets appearance
12. Sexual attraction
13. Desire for target
    Experiment 1
14. Participants
15. Male undergraduates
16. Procedure
17. Two conditions: White background/red background
18. 5s to look at photo (black and white) of an averagely attractive female
19. Completed a questionnaire immediately following
20. Results
21. Males in red condition perceived woman as more attractive
22. Experiment 2
23. Participants
24. Male and female undergraduates
25. Procedure
26. Same as Exp. 1 except researchers used a photo of a different woman
27. Results
28. Males in red condition perceived woman as more attractive
29. Effect was not present for woman
30. Experiment 3
31. Participants
32. Male undergraduates
33. Procedure
34. Same as Exp. 1, except a gray background was substituted for the white background
35. Perceived likeability was also measured, in addition to attractiveness/sexual desirability
36. Results
37. Males in red condition found woman to be more attractive
38. Red did not have an effect on overall likeability
39. Experiment 4
40. Participants
41. Male undergraduates
42. Procedure
43. Same as Exp. 1, except a green background was substituted for the white background
44. Perceived kindness and intelligence was also measured
45. Results
46. Males in the red condition found woman to be more attractive
47. Red did not have effect on perceived kindness and intelligence
48. Experiment 5
49. Participants
50. Male undergraduates
51. Procedure
52. Color presentation was transferred to the target woman’s shirt using the color red compared with the color blue
53. Willingness to date and spend money on a date with the target was measured
54. Results
55. Men who viewed a woman in a red shirt perceived her to be more attractive, were more sexually attracted to her, and indicated a greater likelihood of asking her on a date and spending money on a date with her
56. Conclusion
57. The color red seems to affect perceived attractiveness, sexual attraction, and dating and spending intentions
58. The red effect was only present for men and not women
59. More research on this topic needs to be done as color represents a type of language within different species and could help in the study of basic approach and avoidance methods

Test Questions:

1.Increased estrogen levels decrease vascular blood flow. (T/F)

2.Men in the red condition found the woman to be more attractive and sexually desirable but it did not affect overall likeability. (T/F)

3.Men would not spend more money on a woman just because she is wearing a red item of clothing. (T/F)

4.Women in the middle of their ovulation cycle are _____ sexually interested.

A. Less

B. More

C. Not at all

5. How much time did men spend looking at each photo in Exp. 1-5?

A. 5 sec

B. 5 min

C. 2 min

6. A felt desire to become romantically involved with a target is…

A. Physical attractiveness

B. Sexual attractiveness

C. Overall likeability

D. None of the above