Effects of Age on Color Preference for Black and White by Infants and Young Children

Abstract

To determine whether race influenced preference for the colors black and white by infants and young children a color preference test was administered to 160 subjects who attended day-care centers and who ranged in age from 6 mo. to 4.5 yr. There were equal numbers of males and females and equal numbers of Afro- and Euro-American subjects. Ages of the subjects were controlled so there were 20 subjects in each 6-mo. age interval. Data were obtained from a 12-item test. The test utilized 6 pairs of toys which were identical except one was black and the other was white. The toy a subject selected was considered that subject's preference and the color of that toy was recorded. A two-way analysis of variance and a regression analysis indicated that, as a group, race affected color preference. Age differences did not produce the same effect for Euro-Americans as for Afro-Americans. As age increased, young Afro-American subjects showed a clear increase in their preference for the color white. A corresponding analysis for Euro-Americans did not show a significant change in color preference with an increase in age.