From the point of view of popular psychology about colors, red is the most passionate color , the one used as a signal of alarm and claim, as it immediately captures attention . It is also obviously linked to blood, love, intimacy and joy , and on the negative side, bad grades, financial problems (red numbers), war, violence or the forbidden. Red is very present in traffic signs, traffic lights, sale prices and food (fruit, meat, spices …).
It is the color of haste and urgency , of the immediate, and also of sexual attraction . That is why red garments, let alone underwear, have always had a special touch and a seductive intention, because they raise the self-esteem of those who wear them . It has its scientific explanation.
According to a study led by Anne Berthold, a psychologist at the University of Zurich in Switzerland, people who dress in shades of red see themselves as prettier and more attractive than those who wear blue . To carry out the research, published in the European Journal of Social Psychology , the scientists asked a group of volunteers to put on a blue or red T-shirt and enter compartments equipped with mirrors, such as changing rooms in stores. Then they asked them to rate their own attractiveness.
Finally, they were instructed to re-qualify, but this time after taking a photo of themselves and seeing themselves in it. The result was conclusive: those who wore red felt sexier . According to the authors of the research, the reason for this effect is that this color attracts more attention and indicates erotic availability . Dressing in red indicates that you are more sexually receptive than wearing blue or other colored clothing. This has a downside: that wearing it can be counterproductive for the more shy individuals, who find it uncomfortable to attract the attention of others.
Other studies reveal that the fascination with red has an objective basis based on biology . A 2010 experiment carried out by several universities and published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology indicated that women dressed in this color were more seductive. To measure the influence of red on sexual attraction, a team of psychologists showed a hundred twenty-somethings photos of women with a similar level of attractiveness, but with the frame either in red or in white.
In other photos they played with the contrast of colors between red, gray, green and blue. Finally, they showed images of women whose shirts had been colored red or blue . In all circumstances, women who appeared with the red frame or wearing red garments were considered more attractive and sexually desirable by men than those who were dressed or framed in other shades. The explanation would have its origin in the physiognomy of our primate ancestors .
For example, female baboons and chimpanzees turn red as a sexual lure as ovulation approaches . In this way they are able to attract males and increase their availability to copulate. Something similar happens with us human beings. And it is that sexuality is much more primitive than we usually believe and red has retained that ability to attract.
