In order to assess Berlin and Kay's (1969) theory of linguistic universals and to test their proposal for an evolutionary hierarchy in the development of colour terms, linguists and anthropologists have sought reliable criteria on which to decide whether or not a colour term is "basic". Berlin and Kay's operational definition of basicness is essentially a list of linguistic criteria which emphasise the form, derivation and frequency of the word. The definition has been criticised for lack of theoretical justification and for operational difficulties. Research is reported which investigates the concept of basicness using the Stroop experiment, a method said to tap into the primitive operations of cognition (MacLeod, 1991). The experiments investigated the relationship between typicality and linguistic basicness in English; differences in the category structure for novices and experts; and the status of colour terms in Russian and Swahili, languages at different stages of the Berlin and Kay hierarchy. Results suggest that Stroop measures differentiate between colour processing and language effects. In particular, it is suggested that linguistic criteria neglect the underlying and essential link between language and colour categories and that linguistic basicness, according to the linguists' formulation, may not necessarily reflect category representation.

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The relationship between language and colour categorisation is explored testing the predictions of the linguistic relativity hypothesis. The basic colour terms of Turkish are investigated, with findings suggesting that the Berlin and Kay (1969) theory of universal colour term evolution might require further revisions. The maximum number allowed by the theory is exceeded by the Turkish colour term inventory, by an extra term in the blue region. This difference between Turkish and English is exploited to test the effects of linguistic categories on colour perception and cognition. Evidence is presented suggesting that some aspects of categorical colour perception may not be fixed and universal, but flexible and culture-specific. Perceived similarity of colours seems to be open to influence by a linguistic category boundary. The argument of flexibility is further investigated using a category learning paradigm. Evidence suggested that perceptual and cognitive effects of colour category boundaries might be acquired through laboratory training. Subjects judge colours to be different more accurately when they come from different categories acquired in training than when they are from the same category. Mechanisms, which may be responsible for such flexibility, are explored in relation to findings in the literature. It is argued that perception and cognition may not be distinguished from each other by clear-cut boundaries. Rather, and interaction between percepts and concepts may facilitate effects of language and learning on human colour categorisation.

Colour is a basic aspect of perception and the perception of colour varies from individual to individual. This indicates that the perception of colours mean different semantics in various contexts to different individuals. Therefore, these differences in perception forms to behave in different attitudes towards colours among individuals and it is likely to achieve different attitudinal responses to colours from individuals. Relying on the effects of colours on individuals, the initial interest of this thesis is to explore the attitudinal approaches of individuals to colours. This thesis is first and foremost exploratory in nature. This thesis intended as a first step towards exploring the ways in which the individuals think of, construe and give meaning to colours in their own words. The subjective approach proposed in terms of this thesis is based on the underlying philosophy behind Personal Construct Theory (PCT). In order to elicit the individuals&rsquo / ways of construing and giving meaning to colours in their own words, an experiment was conducted with the utilisation of the Repertory Grid Technique (RGT). Sixty undergraduate students of Middle East Technical University (METU) Faculty of Architecture were voluntarily participated in the experiment. As a stimuli, eleven basic colours which were black, grey, white, yellow, orange, red, pink, purple, brown, blue and green were utilised. For the second step, this thesis intended investigating the structure and interrelations between the elicited attitudes of individuals and eleven basic colours. As a result of the experiment, 60 repertory grids were elicited and were analysed by using the qualitative and quantitative applications of content analysis. The resulted data afterwards were analysed by using multivariate statistical analysis methods. The overall results of this research can support certain information for further scientific investigations on colour perception and colour psychology. Additionally, the results of this research can help and guide designers to attain objective understandings about the individuals&rsquo / attitudes to colours. This can contribute to designers as a practical worthwhile during colour design and colour planning in their products and services.

Colour is a basic aspect of perception and the perception of colour varies from individual to individual. This indicates that the perception of colours mean different semantics in various contexts to different individuals. Therefore, these differences in perception forms to behave in different attitudes towards colours among individuals and it is likely to achieve different attitudinal responses to colours from individuals. Relying on the effects of colours on individuals, the initial interest of this thesis is to explore the attitudinal approaches of individuals to colours. This thesis is first and foremost exploratory in nature. This thesis intended as a first step towards exploring the ways in which the individuals think of, construe and give meaning to colours in their own words. The subjective approach proposed in terms of this thesis is based on the underlying philosophy behind Personal Construct Theory (PCT). In order to elicit the individuals&rsquo / ways of construing and giving meaning to colours in their own words, an experiment was conducted with the utilisation of the Repertory Grid Technique (RGT). Sixty undergraduate students of Middle East Technical University (METU) Faculty of Architecture were voluntarily participated in the experiment. As a stimuli, eleven basic colours which were black, grey, white, yellow, orange, red, pink, purple, brown, blue and green were utilised. For the second step, this thesis intended investigating the structure and interrelations between the elicited attitudes of individuals and eleven basic colours. As a result of the experiment, 60 repertory grids were elicited and were analysed by using the qualitative and quantitative applications of content analysis. The resulted data afterwards were analysed by using multivariate statistical analysis methods. The overall results of this research can support certain information for further scientific investigations on colour perception and colour psychology. Additionally, the results of this research can help and guide designers to attain objective understandings about the individuals&rsquo / attitudes to colours. This can contribute to designers as a practical worthwhile during colour design and colour planning in their products and services.