A Neo-Whorfian Revisitation of Color Memory

Abstract

A neo-Whorfian viewpoint on the effects of color names on color memory was tested in two studies with 140 undergraduate subjects. The controlling conception was that stimulus shapes of objects which have characteristic colors (e.g., tomato—red) can function like labels when viewing conditions are difficult. Hypothesized effects were that recognition or reproduction of the colors of such shapes would tend toward the best typical choices for the primary color term linguistically associated with the object. Exps. 1 and 2 pitted the major hypothesis against a prediction derived from Bruner's perceptual theory that familiar shapes would induce reproduction of a color toward the average object color. Two colors, actual average object colors, and best typical instances of associated color terms were made the overlapping segments of a variable color mixer on which color matches were made. Target stimuli from the middle ranges of the overlapping color-wheel segments were tachistoscopically presented either as familiar “red” or “green” objects or as plain circular stimuli. Reproductions consistently averaged toward best instances of primary color terms “red” or “green” rather than toward average object colors. Alternative interpretations of the data are discussed.