The impact of light and colour on psychological mood: A cross-cultural study of indoor work environments

• Autores: Küller, Rikard; Ballal, Seifeddin; Laike, Thorbjörn; Mikellides, Byron; Tonello, Graciela Lucia del Carmen
• Año de publicación: 2006
• Idioma: inglés
• Tipo de recurso: artículo
• Materia: ARTIFICIAL LIGHTING; DAYLIGHT; INTERIOR COLOUR; PSYCHOLOGICAL MOOD; WINDOWS; WORK ENVIRONMENTS
• Institución: Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas

The aim of the study was to determine whether indoor lighting and colour would have any systematic impact on the mood of people working indoors. Earlier studies have mostly focused either on light, colour or windows in laboratory settings. The present study was carried out in real work environments at different seasons and in countries with different latitudes. A total of 988 persons completed all parts of the study. In the countries situated far north of the equator there was a significant variation in psychological mood over the year that did not occur in the countries closer to the equator. When all four countries were considered together, it became evident that the light and colour of the workplace itself also had an influence on the mood of persons working there. The workers' mood was at its lowest when the lighting was experienced as much too dark. The mood then improved and reached its highest level when the lighting was experienced as just right, but when it became too bright the mood declined again. On the other hand, the illuminance as measured in objective terms, showed no significant impact on mood at any time of the year. The relationship between mood and the distance to the nearest window was bimodal. The results also indicate that the use of good colour design might contribute to a more positive mood. It is suggested that in future research light and colour should be studied as parts of the more complex system making up a healthy building.
Fil: Küller, Rikard. Lund Institute of Technology; Suecia
Fil: Ballal, Seifeddin. King Faisal University; Arabia Saudita
Fil: Laike, Thorbjörn. Lund Institute of Technology; Suecia
Fil: Mikellides, Byron. Oxford Brookes University; Reino Unido
Fil: Tonello, Graciela Lucia del Carmen. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Tecnología. Departamento de Luminotecnia, Luz y Visión; Argentina