'Cyprus International University, NicosiaĢZedrock and Herman Architecture, Delta State, Nigeria Color, is one of the effective factors in a space which influences the way individuals express their emotions.Īccording to Birren (2006), colors have many emotional impacts, namely, temperature, strong and weak, hard and Various colors represent various moods therefore, the need to know what color to paint a particular enclosed space is necessary so that the space will be best utilized by its intended users. They have a subterranean consequence on how people feel both psychologically and physically. This research study is conducted to discover the psychological effects of colors on individuals, using the students' union complex as a research area.Ĭolor has been found to increase a person's arousal (Huchendorf, 2007). Therefore, colors must be studied in real contexts because they are experienced in environments where complex patterns interact with perceptions and behavior (Tofle, Schwarz, Voon, & Max-Royaie, 2004). Furthermore, the function, surrounding environment, the users' profile are also important factors which interactively be effectual on people's emotional situations. So the use of color is one of the crucial elements in designing the appropriate circulation of public interiors. Vivid color coding may enhance short-term memory and improve functional ability (Cernin, Environmental interventions that promote way finding can be implemented on two levels: the design of the floor plan typology and environmental cues, which comprise signage, furnishings, lighting, colors, and so on. It is also significant to draw cognitive map and way finding in interiors.

Hence, using the appropriate color in design is important in such buildings.

In this context, it is believed that the various physical components including light and color have a great importance on the environmental characteristics of space, especially in public use like students' union centers. The ambiance of the interior space affects the users' behaviors and perception of that place by influencing their emotional situation. Therefore, it may follow that if we could measure it, we may get a clue as to how our mood varies when in any enclosed space. The design of an environment through a variety of means such as temperature, sounds, layout, lighting, and colors can stimulate perceptual and emotional responses in consumers and affect their behavior (Kotler, 1973 in Yildirim, Akalinbaskaya, & Hidayetoglu, 2007, p. It can actually be used to 'level out' emotions or to create different moods (Aves & Aves, 1994, p. In clothing, interiors, landscape, and even natural light, a color can change our mood from sad to happy, from confusion to intelligence, from fear to confidence. According to the various researches, the color that surrounds us in our daily lives has a profound effect on our mood and on our behavior (e.g., Babin, Hardesty, & Suter, 2003 Kwallek, Lewis, & Robbins, 1988 Kwallek, Woodson, Lewis, & Sales, 1997 Rosenstein, 1985). We live in a world of color (Huchendorf, 2007, p. This research would contribute to understand more about colors and how they affect our feelings and therefore to make better decisions and increase the use of spaces when choosing colors for different spaces to suit the purpose for which they are designed. Questionnaires have been collected and analyzed to find out the effects different colors had on students' moods in different spaces of the students' union complex. The research method is survey, and questionnaires were drawn up and distributed to an even range of students, comprising both international and local students undergraduate and graduate. This building was chosen due to its richness in color variances. This research aims to discover the psychological effects of colors on individuals, using the students' union complex in a university campus. Sevinc Kurt1 and Kelechi Kingsley Osueke2 The Effects of Color on the Moods of College Students

Color moods test