'Colour psychologist' under arrest for enforcing stereotypes

A brand specialist who calls themself a ‘colour psychologist’ has found themselves at the centre of an international backlash this week after being accused of perpetuating harmful stereotypes in corporate society.

The allegations initially sent shockwaves through the branding intelligence community before investigators clarified the complaints related exclusively to colours.

According to visual identity authorities, the psychologist had spent more than two decades insisting that red was "passionate", blue was "trustworthy", yellow was "happy" and green was "healthy", despite overwhelming evidence that red also represents anger, danger, debt, stop signs and approximately half the supermarket's weekly specials.

Witnesses say the situation escalated after the psychologist described black as "premium", prompting charcoal to file a formal complaint for being "constantly overlooked despite doing the same job."

Orange later joined the class action, arguing it had grown tired of being reduced to "energetic" despite decades of successful employment as roadworks signage, prison uniforms and discount stickers. Purple reportedly declined to comment, saying it was "above this."

Brand consultant Claire Donovan said the case highlighted one of branding and marketing's most enduring misconceptions. "Colour isn't a personality test," she explained. "It's context. Anything else than that is reverse colour psychology based on multinational brands that chose certain colours and these colours are associated with those brand’s perceived personality traits.”

“See, Coca-Cola isn't recognised because red means excitement. It's recognised because Coca-Cola has spent more than a century relentlessly owning that particular shade of red."

Industry experts say designers have become increasingly suspicious of presentations claiming individual colours possess universal psychological powers. "If blue automatically created trust," one strategist noted, "every bank would have a perfect reputation. And if green truly meant sustainability, half the products labelled 'eco' wouldn't still come wrapped in three layers of plastic."

The psychologist has since been released without charge after agreeing to refrain from telling clients that changing their logo from navy to teal would increase sales by 14.7 per cent, because it "combines the trustworthiness of blue with the growth of green while avoiding blue's corporate baggage."

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