Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsResearch QuestionsWhat the Research SuggestsDevelop a HypothesisPlan Your ExperimentCollect Data and Report Results

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Research Questions

What the Research Suggests

Develop a Hypothesis

Plan Your Experiment

Collect Data and Report Results

Close

Does color affect reading comprehension? Some say that using colored paper or text rather than plain white paper or black font can improve learning and performance. For example, could printing text on green paper help students read better, while another is yellow paper helps students perform better on math exams?

How accurate are these claims? If you’re looking for a fun experiment idea for students, this could be a fun and easy experiment. Here’s how to design a psychology experiment around this theory.

At a GlanceDoes the color of the paper or the color of the text really have an impact on how much a student learns or how well they perform on an exam? These questions form agreat basis for a psychology experimentthat you can perform yourself. If you are looking for a psychology experiment idea for a high school or college course, consider testing whether the color of paper and/or the color of the text impacts test results or memory.

At a Glance

Does the color of the paper or the color of the text really have an impact on how much a student learns or how well they perform on an exam? These questions form agreat basis for a psychology experimentthat you can perform yourself. If you are looking for a psychology experiment idea for a high school or college course, consider testing whether the color of paper and/or the color of the text impacts test results or memory.

Research Questions to Consider

When preparing an experiment about color and learning, you may choose one of these questions to study in your experiment:

It can be helpful to look at what current research says about whether color affects reading comprehension.

Results have presented contradictory findings. Some studies have found that colored reading overlays had no impact on reading rate or accuracy in people with reading disabilities and without. However, other studies have found that such overlays can help improve reading rate and accuracy.

Some research has suggested that visual overlays can help minimize visual stress and fatigue. This might be particularly helpful for those with specific vision problems, dyslexia, and other reading difficulties.

However, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has stated that there is insufficient evidence to recommend using colored overlays to improve reading comprehension.

Other research has suggested that the use of color can help induce wholeness, parts-whole organization, and phenomenal fragmentation when reading and comprehending written material.

Developing Your Hypothesis

After you have chosen a research question, your next step is to develop a hypothesis. Your hypothesis should be an educated guess about what you think will happen in the experiment. For example, apossible hypothesismight be one of the following:

Planning Your Experiment on Color and Reading Comprehension

In the next step of your experiment on color and reading comprehension, you must select participants, create the materials you’ll use in the study, and identify the key variables of interest.

Choose Participants

When choosing participants for your study, talk to your instructor. In some cases, you might be able to experiment with other students in yourpsychology or science course.

Remember, it is essential to get permission from your teacher before proceeding to work with any group of participants.

Develop Study Materials

After you have selected a group of participants, create the materials that you will use in your experiment. For this psychology experiment, your materials might include a math test printed on different colors of paper, reading selections printed on different colors of paper and/or with different colored fonts, and reading comprehension tests.

Identify Your Key Variables

Next, determine the keyvariablesof your experiment. These variables may differ depending on the exact hypothesis you decided to investigate.

For example, if you are researching whether or not colored paper increases reading comprehension, yourindependent variablewould be the color of the paper and thedependent variablewould be the scores on the reading comprehension test.

Collect and Analyze Data and Report on the Results

Ideas for Psychology Experiments

4 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Uccula A, Enna M, Mulatti C.Colors, colored overlays, and reading skills.Front Psychol. 2014;5. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00833Denton TF, Meindl JN. The effect of colored overlays on reading fluency in individuals with dyslexia.Behav Anal Pract. 2015;9(3):191-198. doi:10.1007/s40617-015-0079-7American Academy of Pediatrics, Section on Ophthalmology, Council on Children with Disabilities, American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, American Association of Certified Orthoptists.Learning disabilities, dyslexia, and vision.Pediatrics. 2009;124(2):837-844. doi:10.1542/peds.2009-1445Pinna B, Deiana K.On the role of color in reading and comprehension tasks in dyslexic children and adults.i-Perception. 2018;9(3):204166951877909. doi:10.1177/2041669518779098Additional ReadingFordham DR, Hayes DC.Worth repeating: paper color may have an effect on student performance.Issues in Accounting Education. 2009;24(2):187-194. doi:10.2308/iace.2009.24.2.187

4 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Uccula A, Enna M, Mulatti C.Colors, colored overlays, and reading skills.Front Psychol. 2014;5. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00833Denton TF, Meindl JN. The effect of colored overlays on reading fluency in individuals with dyslexia.Behav Anal Pract. 2015;9(3):191-198. doi:10.1007/s40617-015-0079-7American Academy of Pediatrics, Section on Ophthalmology, Council on Children with Disabilities, American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, American Association of Certified Orthoptists.Learning disabilities, dyslexia, and vision.Pediatrics. 2009;124(2):837-844. doi:10.1542/peds.2009-1445Pinna B, Deiana K.On the role of color in reading and comprehension tasks in dyslexic children and adults.i-Perception. 2018;9(3):204166951877909. doi:10.1177/2041669518779098Additional ReadingFordham DR, Hayes DC.Worth repeating: paper color may have an effect on student performance.Issues in Accounting Education. 2009;24(2):187-194. doi:10.2308/iace.2009.24.2.187

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Uccula A, Enna M, Mulatti C.Colors, colored overlays, and reading skills.Front Psychol. 2014;5. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00833Denton TF, Meindl JN. The effect of colored overlays on reading fluency in individuals with dyslexia.Behav Anal Pract. 2015;9(3):191-198. doi:10.1007/s40617-015-0079-7American Academy of Pediatrics, Section on Ophthalmology, Council on Children with Disabilities, American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, American Association of Certified Orthoptists.Learning disabilities, dyslexia, and vision.Pediatrics. 2009;124(2):837-844. doi:10.1542/peds.2009-1445Pinna B, Deiana K.On the role of color in reading and comprehension tasks in dyslexic children and adults.i-Perception. 2018;9(3):204166951877909. doi:10.1177/2041669518779098

Uccula A, Enna M, Mulatti C.Colors, colored overlays, and reading skills.Front Psychol. 2014;5. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00833

Denton TF, Meindl JN. The effect of colored overlays on reading fluency in individuals with dyslexia.Behav Anal Pract. 2015;9(3):191-198. doi:10.1007/s40617-015-0079-7

American Academy of Pediatrics, Section on Ophthalmology, Council on Children with Disabilities, American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, American Association of Certified Orthoptists.Learning disabilities, dyslexia, and vision.Pediatrics. 2009;124(2):837-844. doi:10.1542/peds.2009-1445

Pinna B, Deiana K.On the role of color in reading and comprehension tasks in dyslexic children and adults.i-Perception. 2018;9(3):204166951877909. doi:10.1177/2041669518779098

Fordham DR, Hayes DC.Worth repeating: paper color may have an effect on student performance.Issues in Accounting Education. 2009;24(2):187-194. doi:10.2308/iace.2009.24.2.187

Meet Our Review Board

Share Feedback

Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

Was this page helpful?

Thanks for your feedback!

What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

What is your feedback?