Researchers from Ghent University have tested the long-held belief that painting prisons cells the color pink reduces aggressive behaviors.
This belief was based on previous demonstrations that supposedly showed reduced strength when pink cards were held in front of a person’s eyes.
The new study was done in an actual Swiss prison with authentic inmates and guards.
The prisoners showed reduced aggression at the end of three days, compared with at their arrival, but crucially, at no time was there a difference in aggression levels (in terms of emotions or behavior) between prisoners in the differently colored cells. The same null result was found when analysis was restricted to just those prisoners who started off low in aggression, or just those who started off with higher aggression.
via BPS Research Digest: Are prisoners calmer when their cells are painted pink?.