Abstract
The use of colour is an integral component in visual interface design for creating separation between objects and for conveying meaning. It has previously been established that colours can be separated in a hierarchy of primary colours and secondary colours, and that colours are consistently associated with specific mood tones. However, it has thus far not been investigated whether these two factors, which we refer to as the perception-primacy and emotion-conveyance, are associated with attentional capture in a congruent manner. To investigate this, we conducted a visual search task study in a controlled environment, in which 11 participants scanned a 20 item display for a coloured target amongst coloured distractors. We found evidence to support that primary colours capture attention significantly more than secondary colours, and inconclusive evidence that colours convey their meaning at a sufficiently early level of processing to influence attention. We end by discussing implications of our results for design practice and research in psychology.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | Proceedings of the 21st International Conference on Engineering Design (ICED17), Vol. 8 |
Subtitle of host publication | Human Behaviour in Design |
Editors | Anja Maier, Stanko Škec, Harrison Kim, Michael Kokkolaras, Josef Oehmen, Georges Fadel, Filippo Salustri, Mike Van der Loos |
Place of Publication | Glasgow |
Pages | 519-528 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Publication status | Published - 25 Aug 2017 |
Event | 21st International Conference on Engineering Design (ICED17) - The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada., Vancouver, Canada Duration: 21 Aug 2017 → 25 Aug 2017 Conference number: 21 http://iced17.org/ |
Publication series
Name | Proceedings of the International Conference on Engineering Design |
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Publisher | The Design Society |
Number | DS 87-8 |
Volume | 8 |
ISSN (Print) | 2220-4342 |
Conference
Conference | 21st International Conference on Engineering Design (ICED17) |
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Abbreviated title | ICED17 |
Country/Territory | Canada |
City | Vancouver |
Period | 21/08/17 → 25/08/17 |
Internet address |
Keywords
- attention in design
- emotional design
- communication
- human behaviour in design
- visualisation