The color red has been shown to induce greater aggression in people than thecolor blue.

The color red has been shown to induce greater aggression in people than the

color blue. Researchers conducted a study to determine whether such colorinduced aggression could influence the amount that consumers were willing to

pay for an identical product in online auction and online negotiation scenarios.

The researchers photographed a single item against each of four background

colors: blue, gray, white, and red. Using a computer, each participant in the study

viewed the item against exactly one of the four background colors. Half of the

participants were told the item was up for auction and were asked to submit their

highest bid for the item. The other half of the participants were told to negotiate

a price with the seller and were asked to offer the highest amount that they

would be willing to pay for the item.

The researchers expected that participants who viewed the red background

would typically behave more aggressively than those who viewed the blue

background. Among the auction group, the researchers hypothesized that more

aggressive participants would submit higher bids as they tried to beat other

potential bidders. Among the negotiation group, the researchers hypothesized

that more aggressive participants would make lower offers as they tried to

compete against the seller to get the best deal.

Assuming the researchers’ hypothesized link between offers and aggression is

correct, for each of the following background colors select More aggressive if, on

average, participants in the negotiation group in the study behaved more

aggressively when the product was displayed with that background color than the

participants did when the product was displayed with a gray background.

Otherwise, select Not more aggressive.