How Does Red Affect Athletic Performance?

Conventional wisdom has it that individual colours are interpreted differently. They are associated with a spectrum of themes and emotions. Red is generally associated with energy, aggression, love and passion amongst a multitude of other interpretations. It is a fiery colour signifying intense emotionality. By way of illustration, Darwin (1872) associated flushing with anger. In addition, red colouration plays an important role in male dominance, as has been shown by numerous research; Cuthill et al., 1977; Milinski & Bakker, 1990; Setchell & Wickings, 2005; Waitt et al., 2003. Consequently, in the last decade, researchers have begun to scrutinise the colour's effect on competitive performance and conducted an array of scientific studies
My subsequent evaluation will effectively link key findings chronologically in order to gain further insight on the research at hand.
Discussion
Initially, Hill & Barton (2005), demonstrated how red increases contestant's chance of winning. Their line of argument followed the aforementioned research; Cuthill et al., 1977; Milinski & Bakker, 1990; Setchell & Wickings, 2005; Waitt et al., 2003. Thus, Hill & Barton (2005) took on an evolutionary perspective, arguing how the influence of the colour red is involved in competitive interactions and emphasizing its importance in sports. First of all, the researchers investigated the effects of wearing red or blue in the 2004 Olympic Games - particularly across a range of different combat sports (boxing, tae kwon do, Greco-Roman wrestling and freestyle wrestling). The results proved to be statistically significant (P=0.041), as contestants wearing red won more fights. Furthermore, their study of combat sports showed that solely in contests of equal skill, more contestants wearing red won than those wearing blue (P=0.014). Additional support for their argument was found by
After all, other factors could have also explained the results and their data could have been confounded by lurking variables, which the researchers did not mention at all in their study. Indeed, this was proven to be the case in follow-up research. In contrast to previously conducted research, Hagemann, Strauss & Leißling (2008) took on a different approach. They argued that the high win rate of wearing red in combat sports can be attributed to the referee's perception of the colour. A favourable perception would consequently lead to bias. Their methodology involved the usage of 42 experienced referees (mean experience as a referee = 8.02 years) to rate a series of tae kwon do videos featuring the same contestants. The colour of the protective gear (either red or blue), was digitally reversed in order to create two blocks of videos. A relatively large sample was used (N > 40) and appropriate precautions of counterbalancing and randomization were taken. Results showed contestants wearing red being awarded 13% more points than their blue counterparts.