How colour impacts your child's psychology and personality

Colour has a remarkable impact on the personality and development of children. Green is a symbol of growth and any creative process. Red is a colour of action but can reduce analytical thinking. Red can also reminds us of all the wrong answers marked by the teachers in our notebooks.

Colours can also be culture specific. Indians wear red on their wedding day. Western brides adore the white wedding gown. White is also attached to sadness or sorrow in the Indian context.

Talking of India, it's again that time of the year when India and Indians all over the world celebrate the colourful festival of Holi. Why is Holi celebrated? Why are bright colours of 'gulal' sprinkled on one another. Why does it bring smiles on faces? Does a splash of colour make you angry or cheerful?

Could there be a connection between Basanti's chatty and boisterous personality (from the famous Hindi movie Sholay) and her loud coloured clothes?

Well, actually there is. There is enough research to indicate that colours define our moods. The association with these colours over time may even define our personality.

If a person always wears grey or dark colours, she or he will not only have a grumpy mood but over time will develop a dark personality.

In light of this, its essential that the right colours are placed around children. Bright colours will make them active and should be used around their play area; these colours can be reflected in their play clothes, colour of toys, etc.

However the same bright colours may not be relevant in the area for sleeping and resting, since the bright colours will prevent the child from resting or sleeping, so the colours here need to be light and soothing. Reflected in the colour of the room, sleeping clothes, even the colour of the pillow and sheets. A thoughtful selection of the right bedroom colour can be done by looking at the colour wheel.

Colours can be used to alter moods and to some extent the personality. If your child is feeling depressed then ask your child to wear something bright and cheerful. Soon you will see a change in his overall mood. If the choice of colour is consistent over time even the personality of the child can be modified.

Robert Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

So next time you want to feel chatty and boisterous like Hema Malini in Sholay then remember the solution may lie in the loud coloured clothes of Basanti.

Learn more on how to add the right colour to your living room or bedroom. Master the Colours of Fortune.

If you can't change the colour of the room or clothes may be you can add in a particular object of the desired colour for example painting of lush green grass in your cold steel office can add the touch of soothingness.

Was Oscar Wilde thinking of our world today—increasingly divided by caste, creed and colour—when he said, “Mere colour, unspoiled by meaning, and unallied by definite form, can speak to the soul in a thousand different ways.”