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Date: Mon, 27 Aug 2007 23:14:54 -0700
To: bsoule &AElig gmail.com, improvetheworld &AElig umich.edu
From: "Eva Revesz" <erevesz &AElig hotmail.com>
Subject: RE: sex difference: the color pink
Status: O


How does testing Chinese women on their favorite color prove that color 
preference is biologically determined?  If that's all this study has to go 
by in the nature vs. nurture argument regarding color preference, than 
that's pretty scant.
I have no idea whether the Chinese dress their baby girls in pink and their 
baby boys in blue -- and this study doesn't even tell us either -- but the 
mere fact that the entire Western world does is enough these days to argue 
for an influence of our culture on theirs, hegemonic as it has become.
Very weak argument here, if you ask me.
Trixie


>From: "bethany soule" <bsoule &AElig gmail.com>
>To: improvetheworld &AElig umich.edu
>Subject: sex difference: the color pink
>Date: Mon, 27 Aug 2007 23:13:00 -0400
>
>(from: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070820120720.htm)
>
>Girls Prefer Pink, Or At Least A Redder Shade Of Blue
>
>Science Daily — A study in Current Biology reports some of the first
>conclusive evidence in support of the long-held notion that men and
>women differ when it comes to their favorite colors. Indeed, the
>researchers found that women really do prefer pink--or at least a
>redder shade of blue--than men do.
>
>"Although we expected to find sex differences, we were surprised at
>how robust they were, given the simplicity of our test," said Anya
>Hurlbert of Newcastle University, UK. In the test, young adult men and
>women were asked to select, as rapidly as possible, their preferred
>color from each of a series of paired, colored rectangles.
>
>The universal favorite color for all people appears to be blue, they
>found. "On top of that, females have a preference for the red end of
>the red-green axis, and this shifts their color preference slightly
>away from blue towards red, which tends to make pinks and lilacs the
>most preferred colors in comparison with others," she said.
>
>Overall, the differences between men and women were clear enough that
>the seasoned researchers can now usually predict the sex of a
>participant based on their favorite-color profile.
>
>To begin to address whether sex differences in color preference depend
>more on biology or culture, the researchers tested a small group of
>Chinese people amongst the other 171 British Caucasian study
>participants. The results among the Chinese were similar, Hurlbert
>said, strengthening the idea that the sex differences might be
>biological. The explanation might go back to humans' hunter-gatherer
>days, when women--the primary gatherers--would have benefited from an
>ability to key in on ripe, red fruits.
>
>"Evolution may have driven females to prefer reddish colors--reddish
>fruits, healthy, reddish faces," Hurlbert said. "Culture may exploit
>and compound this natural female preference."
>
>She said another way to separate "nature versus nurture" when it comes
>to favorite colors will be to test the preferences of infants. The
>researchers have plans to modify the color-choice test for use in
>young babies and hope to have some answers on that front soon.
>
>About the universal preference for blue, "I can only speculate," said
>Hurlbert. "I would favor evolutionary arguments again here. Going back
>to our 'savannah' days, we would have a natural preference for a clear
>blue sky, because it signaled good weather. Clear blue also signals a
>good water source."
>
>The researchers include Anya C. Hurlbert and Yazhu Ling of Newcastle
>Univesity in Newcastle upon Tyne,UK.
>
>Hurlbert and Ling: "Biological components of sex differences in colour
>preference." Publishing in Current Biology, 21 August 2007, R623-625.

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