Why angry people do actually see red

Scientists have proven that angry people really do 'see red'.

16:47 17 March 2014

A study which was conducted with the main purpose to establish connection between colour red and human emotions, particularly anger, aggression, and danger, has revealed that angry people really do “see red.”

Participated by people with ‘hostile personalities’, scientists showed images that were neither fully red nor fully blue and could be perceived as either. It was revealed that angry or aggressive people were much more likely to see red rather than the blue within the ambiguous images.

Reseachers from North Dakota State University  said that the connection may be linked to our evolution from ancestral hunter-gatherer times to link red with danger and threats.

The researchers said: "Hostile people have hostile thoughts; hostile thoughts are implicitly associated with the colour red, and therefore hostile people are biased to see this colour more frequently.”

"A core take-home message from this research is that colour can convey psychological meaning and, therefore, is not merely a matter of aesthetics.”