Self-help Articles

by Andrew Elliot, Ph.D., Daniela Niesta Kayser, Ph.D., Tobias Greitemeyer, Ph.D., Stephanie Lichtenfield, Ph.D.

This color is a symbol of courage and sacrifice, of sin and sexuality, of power and passion – and now a research published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General demonstrates that it is the perfect color for men because it makes them more attractive to women.
“Red is typically thought of as a sexy color for women only,” said Andrew Elliot, Ph.D. “Our findings suggest that the link between red and sex also applies to men.”

Red: An Attractive Color For Men

Although red may mean different things in different cultures, the findings of the research which involved women from the United States, England, Germany and China, was consistent: men are more appealing when they were either in red or surrounded by it.

Using a nine-point scale, twenty five men and thirty two women answered three questions about attractiveness and pleasantness after briefly viewing a black-and-white photo of a Caucasian man in a polo shirt, surrounded by either red or white matte.

Red warmed up the women only. Women who looked at the man surrounded by red, rated him a little over one point higher on a nine-point scale of attractiveness, a statistically significant bump.

Another experiment featured a man dressed in either red or green shirt. Fifty five women rated the man in red as significantly more attractive -- on average, nearly one point higher on the same nine-point scale. They also thought he was more desirable, according to a second, five-item measure that asked viewers to rate, for example, the likelihood that they would want to have sex with him.

A Status Symbol

Women in a follow-up study perceived men wearing red T-shirts more likely to be high in status than men wearing blue T-shirts. In addition, men in red appeared to be generally more sexually attractive. Other smaller studies comparing women’s responses to men in red or gray, and their sense of men’s status, established a chain of evidence that red enhances sexual attractiveness because it is a status symbol, according to the authors.

Even In The Bedroom

Are men aware that red may work in the bedroom as well as the boardroom? The authors suggest red might make men more likely to strut their stuff. “A man who wears red may feel dominant,” they added, “which influences his self-confidence and behavior and in turn may impress women.”

Article:

“Red, Rank, and Romance in Women Viewing Men,” Andrew J. Elliot, PhD, University of Rochester and University of Munich; Daniela Niesta Kayser, PhD, University of Rochester; Tobias G. Greitemeyer, PhD, University of Innsbruck; Stephanie Lichtenfield, PhD, University of Munich; Richard H. Gramzow, PhD, University of Southampton; Markus A. Maier, PhD, University of Munich; Huijun Liu, PhD, Tianjin Medical University; Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, Vol. 139, No. 3.