You can either love pink or hate it, there is no third option. Some people consider it the color of love, others - vulgarity, frivolity and immaturity. Both are right. The psychology of flowers is a very interesting area that can tell a lot about a person. What does the color pink mean in psychology and its symbolism will be discussed further.
According to the meaning of the color pink in psychology, it helps in times of disappointment and stress. This shade is a wonderful antidepressant that removes blues, melancholy and instills faith in a better future. Look at it more often if you want to get rid of the burden of past relationships, long-standing grievances, ballast that pulls you down. It sets you up for creating a positive future.
Physiological and psychological effects
Pink color has a calming effect on the body, even in the most irritated state. The pink room will help overcome children's fear of the dark and give the child a restful sleep. It belongs to warm shades and transfers all their properties.
It helps the body to gently accelerate blood circulation and normalize the functioning of internal organs. Color is used in various meditative practices; it triggers recovery processes in the body.
White, present in its composition, promotes the development of mental activity, relaxes muscles, evens out breathing, helps restore the endocrine system, and protects against eye and ear diseases.
Pink is the color of tenderness and airiness, and with its help, romantic relationships with a partner are improved. Red color awakens passion and sensuality, pink has a different effect, it awakens the partner’s desire to be affectionate, to show warmth, caution and caring. It builds trust in couples and removes psychological barriers. For girls who have not found love, it is recommended to wear pink stones; they will make the image more playful and seductive.
Health effects
There is very little theoretical research in the field of psychology of perception and the effects of color on the body. Most of the works are of a practical nature. That is, the phenomenon of impact on the body simply exists, that’s all. But scientists are not yet able to explain how exactly this works.
Color therapy is still a pseudoscientific treatment method, that is, it has no scientific basis
How pink affects the body:
Acts as a sedative and analgesic. Calms, beneficial for the nervous system. Reduces tension and fatigue. Helps with sleep problems. Promotes bone tissue restoration. Helps with digestion. Reduces aggressiveness. Improves mood. Improves appetite.
It is important to understand that in large quantities pink can have the opposite effect on the body.
* * *
Perhaps the most controversial and controversial color in our culture is pink. His story is full of surprises, and the impact on the psyche is ambiguous.
Pink is a symbol of innocence and childhood, it easily turns into a sign of flirtation and sexuality, you just need to add brightness to it. That is why it should be used with caution in the wardrobe and interior.
This color carries a lot of emotionality. Therefore, no matter what a pink lover is - a modest dreamer or an activist and freedom fighter, he is always a passionate person with a warm heart.
Characteristics of people who love pink
A woman or girl who chooses the color pink and its shades does not accept cruelty, injustice, or violence. She is very sensitive, changeable and emotional, any little thing can throw her off balance.
When there is too much of this color, it indicates a person’s psychological protection. He tries to escape from problems and responsibilities into his illusory world and stay in it as long as possible.
A girl who likes this color has a crowd of fans because she has a gentle, innocent and slightly childish look. Men want to take care of and pamper, provide protection and a strong male shoulder, which women so unsuccessfully seek.
People who love pink are sociable and cheerful extroverts. They have a lot of positivity and interesting ideas; they are creative individuals who love their work so much that it is difficult for them to switch to relaxation. There is a crowd of people around them, and they easily make new acquaintances. These are individuals with warmth, a sense of celebration inside, they radiate happiness with their presence.
Girls get pink, boys blue. But why?
Over the past few years, questions about whether communal toilets are necessary and whether it is wise to give children the right to decide their gender have been on the minds of millions of people. Meanwhile, at the other extreme, there is a marketing boom for the “girlization” of everything, writes professor of neuroscience Gina Rippon. Pink clothes, toys, postcards, phones, computers, bicycles... It cannot be said that before there was no division of things into “pink for girls, blue for boys,” but in the late 2010s, with their strong femme agenda, this phenomenon, which researchers called pinkification, looks quite unexpected.
The New York Times columnist, in her best-selling book Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front of a New Girl Culture, notes that Disney sells more than 25,000 items of princess merchandise.
Pinkification is constantly criticized, but, like any phenomenon that brings money to its creators, it is in no hurry to disappear.
In American culture, color marking of gender begins even before the birth of a child - with the so-called gender reveal party. At the 20th week, an ultrasound scan reveals the sex of the baby, and many expectant mothers throw a party for this occasion. Those who could not resist and found out whether it will be a boy or a girl, throw parties with the appropriate surroundings - lunch with girlfriends in a room decorated with pink sparkles, or a themed party with guns and cars. For those who like surprises, identical cakes with pink or blue filling are baked. In all cases, gifts cannot be avoided - heaps of pink or blue balloons, socks, bibs, etc.
Even formally progressive initiatives aimed at combating pinkification are being overwhelmed by a pink wave: Mattel has released STEM Barbie, a series of dolls that make careers for engineers. But what does such a progressive doll design? That's right, a pink washing machine, a pink rotating wardrobe, a pink carousel stand for jewelry.
You may wonder why this is even important.
It is important to understand whether pinkification reflects a biologically determined difference or enforces an artificially constructed stereotype by society.
If it is a biological imperative, then it must be respected and supported, right? But if we are talking about a social construct, it is worth understanding whose interests it serves. Who benefits from the fact that a girl, mesmerized by pink beads, does not pay attention to construction sets and prefers biographies of princesses to adventure books?
In 2007, a group of scientists set out to identify the objective reasons for women’s craving for the color pink, if they exist. The working hypothesis was that for ancient female foragers, pink was the color of ripe berries, as opposed to green of unripe ones. Another theory was that pink was the “color of empathy” - women monitored the health of other members of the community, especially small children, and a change in skin color was one of the first signs of illness. The conducted research on the color preferences of the sexes was picked up by the media and widely promoted with the message “girls prefer pink - it’s in the brain,” despite the fact that there were only 200 participants in the experiments, only adults were studied, and the Chinese, unlike the British, have a craving for The pink-red color was also strongly expressed in men (in China, red is traditionally considered the most elegant and majestic color).
Three years later, a similar study of color preferences was conducted in five-month-old infants, who were shown objects of different colors. And it turned out that they all liked the red part of the spectrum, regardless of gender.
This media article was cited five times less often than the one confirming the “biological roots of love for pink.”
Already at the age of three, children assign gender to toys based on their color: pink and lilac for girls, green and brown for boys. American psychologists Vanessa Lobu and Judy Deloach were able to determine at what age children understand this relationship. Two hundred children, from seven months to five years old, were presented with pairs of objects, one of which was pink. The result turned out to be unambiguous: until the age of two, pink is perceived neutrally, then girls begin to prefer these particular items, and boys, on the contrary, reject them.
Researchers suggest that the pink-blue divide (BBD) began about a hundred years ago, at least when patterns began to appear in documentary sources such as newspapers and books. Gender division in literature for children appeared around the same time - at the end of the 19th century, before that there was a clear differentiation in the culture of the worlds of men and women, but not of small children.
Obviously, the color pink itself has no meaning today, whether it was associated with gathering at the dawn of mankind or not.
What matters is that it became a code for segregation, locking the target audience (girls) within a limited set of expectations. Boys are also excluded from this set, which also limits their freedom.
Paradoxically, sometimes pinkification, on the contrary, is used as a permissive marker - as in the example with the same STEM Barbie. But in such cases there is often a paternalistic subtext: they say, the girl will not be able to understand on her own that being an engineer is cool until we invite her to invent lipsticks.
In 2020, the White House even held a special meeting of experts who were supposed to discuss whether toys are the most important tool for manipulating children's undecided consciousness. Do they reflect what is already happening in the brain—or do they dictate it? There is no clear answer.
Gender preferences in the type of toys exist, and they are determined by the dose of male hormones that the child receives while in the womb.
This was the conclusion of sociologists from the University of Cambridge, who studied the behavior of 120 children one, one and a half and two years old. Girls were significantly more interested in dolls, and boys - in cars. At the same time, colors did not matter to them, which allowed the researchers to draw a conclusion about the social nature of choice within the framework of RGR.
To understand whether certain toys direct the life scenario of a little person contrary to his natural inclinations or, on the contrary, develop them, it is necessary to look at the situation more broadly. Is the limited and scattered Western research on the issue valid for all cultures?
And who actually decides what is a “boy’s toy” and a “girl’s toy” - the children themselves, parents, marketers, the media?
American psychologists Judith Blackmore and Renee Centers asked 300 boys and girls to sort 126 toys into three categories: for boys, for girls, for both sexes. Based on the behavior of the experiment participants, they identified five types of toys: definitely masculine, moderately masculine, definitely feminine, moderately feminine and neutral. The results showed unanimity in the determination of gender - only nine toys were controversial, and they argued about moderately masculine/neutral or neutral/moderately feminine.
Psychologist Brenda Todd from the University of London decided to test whether a similar consensus existed in children. Will all boys choose a car, an excavator, a ball or a blue bear? Will all girls take a doll, a set of dishes or a pink bear? Participants were divided into three groups: 9–17 months (age of first independent play), 18–23 months (showing early signs of understanding gender), and 24–32 months (age of already established gender identity).
The older the boys were, the longer they played with “male” toys and the less time they played with “female” toys. For girls, this dependence turned out to be the opposite - the doll attracted the attention of the younger group, the older ones were increasingly interested in cars.
What will happen if arbitrary toys are assigned as “male” and “female” toys, and not those to which we are accustomed? This idea was tested in a small (42-participant) experiment: children were given shoe trees, nut crackers, garlic presses, and melon cups, each item in blue or pink, and each was randomly assigned a “girl” or “boy” option. Boys did not look at color, showing equal interest in each type of toy, but girls found pink objects more interesting. However, when the “male” garlic press was repainted pink, they began to like it no less than the “female” items. No such effect was noted in boys.
According to marketing historian Elizabeth Sweet, toys in the 1950s were much more gendered (for example, a young construction worker's set was contrasted with a young carpet cleaner's set) than in the 1970s through the 1990s, as the rise of feminism made toys more gender neutral.
However, we are now at risk of losing the gains of these years - according to Sweet, this is due to the liberalization of regulation of children's programs.
Cartoons are becoming a tool for marketers, and for them, gender division is a convenient way to target the target audience and increase profits.
Do we play pink ponies in family and blue soldiers in war because we want to, or because society programs us? We hope to answer this question, as well as many others, by collecting more data and drawing more accurate conclusions based on their analysis. One thing is clear: the more society advocates the separation of gender roles, the more the child’s brain, like a sponge absorbing all the patterns that exist around it, will be gender fixed - with all the positive and negative consequences that flow from this.
Color aversion
If a person does not like the color pink, this indicates the following problems:
- excessive temper and irritability;
- conservatism;
- emotional and physical fatigue;
- severity, pragmatism, denial of the romantic component in relationships;
- a person does nothing spontaneously, his actions are carefully planned;
- secrecy and reluctance to show even positive emotions;
- difficulties in showing care and love towards family and partner.
Who is it suitable for?
Suitable for young girls of short stature. It emphasizes youth, innocence, purity and sincerity. For blondes, delicate shades are suitable; for brunettes and brown-haired women, it is better to choose darker ones. If we talk about zodiac signs, then pink and its shades are more suitable for fire and air signs, but earth signs (Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn) do not like it. These three signs are down-to-earth, practical and conservative; shades of green, orange, brown, and also classic black are more suitable for them.
Women's clothing
The color of clothing says a lot about the wearer. Girls and women of any age can wear pink clothes if they choose the right shade. One of the main rules is that warm pastels are suitable for golden, peach skin, and bright colors are suitable for pale and transparent skin. If you doubt whether the image will look harmonious, purchase several accessories: for example, instead of a dress, you can create an image in which the main color will be different, and a handbag, belt, bracelet or shoes can be pink.
Recommendations for choosing shades:
- Bright colors are appropriate in the summer; for autumn and winter, it is better to choose pastels.
- For a business dinner or meeting, use tandem with gray. The gray shade will remove unnecessary frivolity in the business sphere.
- A pink dress is a great option for a romantic date. It will give you tenderness and softness.
- Pink looks in tandem with classic black and white shades, purple and green.
- When creating an image, do not overdo it with pink, this will give it unnecessary vulgarity and vulgarity.
Men's clothing
Contrary to cliches, pink is not only a feminine color, but also a masculine one, the main thing is a properly selected wardrobe. It does not show weakness or femininity, but says that a man observes fashion trends. Pink is chosen for:
- Shirts or shirts.
- Jacket.
- Costumes are important for presenters, showmen, artists and other creative people.
- A man uses pink to create the image of a romantic hero. The color is also suitable for beachwear.
Some men like pink, but they are embarrassed to wear things of this color openly, so as not to become an object of ridicule in a male group.
Was there really no color “affiliation”?
She was. But a little different. In earlier times, young children were most often dressed in white clothes, since the light color was always considered a sign of innocence. Also, such a fashion trend was dictated by the fact that white fabric was much easier to clean using detergents of that time. But at the same time, both boys and girls were dressed in white.
Seven daily habits of happy people
Only on a soft spot: Russian Domostroy forbade punishing children in any other way
The newlyweds traveled all over the world and took wedding photos in every country
Again, returning to the past, it is worth paying attention to the fact that children began to wear colorful outfits only when they reached 6-7 years old. It was from that moment that items of clothing were introduced into the wardrobe that spoke about their gender. But surprisingly, there were many examples of boys wearing suits that were not the most masculine by today’s standards. If you look at some old paintings, for example from 1840, you can see little boys dressed in pink dresses with ruffles.
Why can pink be called a masculine shade?
It is believed that red and its shades are a feminine color, and blue is a masculine color. This opinion is outdated. Five reasons why men should wear pink:
- In some countries, the color pink symbolized people belonging to the class of workers and servants. And this was the only reason why he became an object of ridicule in the twenties of the last century.
- Some time ago, babies were dressed in white, but for babies under one year old it is difficult to determine whether it is a boy or a girl. Then they came up with the idea of adding two colors: blue and pink. Initially, the symbol of the female color was blue, this is the color of the Virgin Mary. Pink was related to red and was associated with men and war.
- People around you associate you not by the color of your clothes, but by your figure and external features.
- Red is the color of strength and power, and pink is its spectrum.
- Previously, it was considered a color without restrictions.
Use pink and its shades to express your uniqueness and stand out from the crowd of black and white shirts.
What does it mean in psychology?
Pink is a mixture of red and white.
It has many shades, sometimes with an admixture of gray and lilac.
The color is passive, unobtrusive , does not cause aggression, unnecessary emotions, or strong irritation.
Considered more feminine than masculine. The peculiarity of pink is that it can be warm, soft, or contain a cold spectrum, becoming sharper and more defiant.
There is a stereotype that teenagers prefer this color more, so it is associated with immaturity, youth, and immaturity . Actually this is not true.
People of any age can wear pink, but it is important to choose the right shade.
Basic values:
- youth;
- freshness;
- origin of life;
- novelty;
- romance;
- tenderness;
- friendliness;
- femininity;
- Love.
As you can see, this is a calm, moderate color that awakens positive emotions.
What does the color pink mean in psychology? Find out from the video:
Interior
Pink is used in interior decoration:
- When decorating a room for a little girl, the color of childish lightness, purity and happiness will give the child a sense of security.
- If you are transforming your office, it is best to opt for pastel colors. This decision will have a beneficial effect on work productivity: unnecessary emotions and irritation will go away, you will focus on the work process.
- Too much pink in one space increases anxiety and leads to physical illness. It is better to use in tandem with white for relaxation, restoration of strength and health.
- Suitable for small rooms - it will make it visually wider.
- A pink-style room is a great solution for a teenage girl. It will create lightness, romance, airiness, freedom, in the spirit of youth and adventurism.
- Both warm and cold shades are suitable for the living room interior.
- You won't find a better shade for opening a women's cafe or club. It helps to feel protected and safe, which has a positive effect on the number of visitors.
- Not recommended for use in bedroom decoration. Men don't like to be in a pink space all the time, it irritates and makes them feel out of place, which results in loss of sleep and deterioration in relationships. To update your bedroom, choose a burgundy shade combined with white or gold.
- Too much color in offices has a negative impact on employee productivity, even in an all-female team.
- The combination of pink and blue is used in the design of bathrooms.
