,
) vs 10 mismatching colours (e.g.
,
,
.)
If the word
was written in
, you would probably have to stop and think before you could name the colour of the word.
This psychological phenomenon is known as The Stroop Effect.
Lenstore tested The Stroop Effect on 2000 British adults and found that only one in five people could ace it the quiz.
Lenstore revealed that 79 per cent of respondents got 5/5 for matching colours, vs just 21 per cent scoring 10/10 for the incongruent/mismatching colours.
They also found that certain variables affect your score, such as your emotional state, age and how often you exercise.
Give it a go:
How well did respondents do overall?
After the test, Lenstore found that overall the youngest people tested were the most likely to score 10/10 for the incongruent colours, with 29 per cent of Generation Z accomplishing this.
However, the worst-performing group was not the oldest (baby boomers) but the second oldest, with just 11.1 per cent of Generation X obtaining a perfect score.
Age:
1. Generation Z - 29.0% scored 10/10 on incongruent colors
2. Millennials - 20.9%
3. Baby Boomers - 13.4%
4. Generation X - 11.1%
Lenstore revealed that the mood of the testers also impacted their score. They found that those who stated they were feeling calm during the quiz were most likely to get a perfect score, while those who felt sad performed worst, with just 9.3 per cent getting 10/10.
Mood
1. Calm - 23.6% of people who identified this as their mood scored 10/10 on incongruent colours
2. Anxious - 19.9%
3. Positive - 19.5%
4. Angry - 14.5%
5. Sad - 9.3%
Lenstore also discovered that those who exercise more performed better.
They revealed that the testers who engaged in daily physical exercise performed the best. Of those who exercised daily, almost one third (28.2 per cent) scored 10/10 in incongruent/mismatched colours, vs just 18.5 per cent of those who rarely exercised.
Exercise
1. Daily - 28.2% of those who exercised daily scored 10/10 on incongruent colours
2. Weekly - 19.9%
3. Rarely - 18.5%
There have been multiple scientific theories aiming to explain The Stroop Effect. Primarily, these are:
• The Speed of Processing Theory: This theory states that people can read words much faster than they can name colours. The speed at which we read makes it much more difficult to name the colour of the word after we've read the word.
• Selective Attention Theory: This theory states that naming the actual colour of the words requires more attention than simply reading the text.
