Architecture Commons^™

Effects Of Color And Lighting Temperature On Mood And Cognitive Performance, Megan Afifi, Elizabeth Krumrei-Mancuso, Janet Trammell

Seaver College Research And Scholarly Achievement Symposium

Research on the psychological effects of design elements is of interest to designers, and even individuals, creating the experience of a space. Generally, warm colors like red and yellow are more stimulating and arousing than cool colors like blue and green, which are more relaxing and calming. Warm colors can also be distracting while cool colors help promote focus. Conversely, warm (orange-white) lighting positively influences mood more than cool (blue-white) lighting, but cool lighting can better promote productivity. No study thus far has analyzed the interaction of background color and lighting temperature on mood and cognitive performance.

We hypothesized that …