Do men and women have the same color vision? We know that there are many differences between the sexes – both physiological and psychological. Could it extend to color vision?
The main difference between male and female color perception is color blindness. Approximately one in twelve males and one in two hundred females - have some form of color vision deficiency. Of this group, 99% exhibit insensitivity to the red and green colors of the spectrum. (Note: Color blindness is not an inability to see all colors; the color-blind eye is insensitive to a specific color range and instead sees very muted variations of a color or a different color.)
There’s something else to consider: Approximately 2- 3% of the world’s women may additional visual equipment (a fourth cone in the eye) that gives a significant increase in color differentiation – similar to the super-vision of many birds.
Aside from colorblindness, much research has been conducted on the topic of human color discrimination between the sexes. We offer the following compilation of information on the topic, from Global Color – Clues & Taboos
Research about Gender Differences and Color Vision
Only recently has a study revealed that women have a better ability to discriminate colors in the red-orange spectrum. Researchers found that the gene that allows people to see the color red comes in an unusually high number of variations. This may explain why women see crimson, vermilion and tomato, but it's all just red to a male. Previous research in other primates has suggested that enhanced red vision in females allows them to better distinguish between berries and foliage when they are gathering food. Scientists speculate that this color sensitivity may be explained by the fact that human females did the gathering in prehistoric times.
Footnote: Verrelli, B. and Tishkoff, S., American Journal of Human Genetics, Septermber, 2004
Most color scientists agree that the main difference in color perception between males and females tends to be more psychological rather than physiological. Since women are more focused on the subtleties of color in fashion and cosmetics, they are more apt to develop a greater sensitivity to color and a better color vocabulary. Men, on the other hand, are generally not faced with any degree of color matching, and psychologically do not need or use such color terminology.
Within the realm of psychological color research, Radeloff's gender-based study is noteworthy. In 1990, he found that women were more likely than men to have a favorite color. He also found that there was no significant difference between men and women for preferences for light versus dark color. However, in expressing the preference for bright and soft (muted) colors, women preferred soft colors and men preferred bright ones. This is quite different from research by Warner in 1950 that indicated that females preferred light pastel colors, and warm rather than cool colors. One might conclude that women's color preferences in 1950 reflected a time when women in the U.S. were subject to the authority of men.
Research has also shown that females are better and faster than males in naming colors. In 1977, Majeres concluded that women have a substantial advantage in verbally encoding colors.
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Stecklers' study in 1990 concluded that women's ability of naming colors is far more precise than men's and also they have a broader vocabulary for color names such as ecru, aquamarine, lavender, and mauve. Finally, a study by Greene (1995) examined the color identification and vocabulary skills of college students. They were asked to identify the colors of 21 color chips. The results showed that women recognized significantly more elaborate colors than did the men.
Aside from these studies conducted in Western culture, Thomas, Curtis, and Bolton conducted another study in Nepal in 1968. Participants were asked to list the names of all the colors they could think of. There was a significant difference between men and women - the women consistently listed more color names than men did. Worth noting is the cultural context of this study since Nepalese women traditionally wear more colorful clothing than men do.
In conclusion, consider this fact: We can never really know that everyone perceives colors the same. This is a topic for another time.
Copyright 2005, Jill Morton, Global Color – Clues & Taboos, All rights reserved
More information about color vision at Color Matters
What is Color-Blindness?
Look Inside the Eye
How Animals See Color
