The objective of this study was to develop an instrument by which the meaning of color in the interior environment could be determined.
Research Design
An abstract color palette was developed that was representative of a picture of an interior. Six palettes were developed based on pictures of six interiors. The palettes were computer–generated color compositions of hue, value, chroma, contrast, overlapping, and adjacencies. Sixty–four volunteer subjects were asked to view each picture, then later each palette, and determine the degree of absence or presence of a characteristic in each. Twenty–one descriptor words represented the characteristics; they were used with a Likert–type, single–word scale.
Analysis
A t–test was run on the responses to each word to determine significant differences in subjects’ responses to the descriptor word for the picture and the palette.
Key Findings
For fourteen words, 66.7%, there were no significant differences between the pictures and the palettes. The abstract color palette was shown to be a valid testing instrument for meaning of color in the interior environment because it reflected the same meaning as the picture.
Conclusion
Although additional validation of this instrument must be completed, this study showed potential for use of the abstract color palette as a visual research instrument that focuses only on the meaning of color and eliminates all other interior components.
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