The Lüscher Test: What It Is And How It Uses Colors
The Lüscher Test is a projective evaluation technique which starts from relating the preference or rejection of different colors with the expression of specific psychological states. It is a test widely used in different areas and has given rise to various controversies due to the nature of its application and its methodological criteria.
We will see below what are some of the theoretical foundations from which the Lüscher Test is based, to then explain the process of application and interpretation, and finally, present some of the criticisms that have been made of it.
Origins and theoretical foundations of the Lüscher Test
In 1947, and after having studied the relationship between color and different psychological diagnoses, Swiss psychotherapist Max Lüscher created a first emotional and psychological evaluation test based on the preference for certain colors and their relationship with personality.
It is a projective type test, that is, an instrument for the exploration of personality and psyche used for diagnostic purposes in different areas such as clinical, work, educational or forensic. Being projective, it is a test that seeks to explore psychic dimensions that are not accessible through other means (for example, through verbal language or observable behavior).
Broadly speaking, the Lüscher Test is based on the idea that the serial choice of eight different colors can account for a specific emotional and psychosomatic state.
The relationship between colors and psychological needs
The Lüscher Test starts from relating the theory of fundamental and complementary colors with the fundamental needs and the needs that intervene indirectly in psychological mechanisms.
In other words, it takes up the psychology of colors to establish a relationship between psychological reactions and chromatic stimuli, where it is assumed that each individual reacts psychologically to the presence of a certain color. Thus, chromatic stimulation can activate reactions that speak of the satisfaction, or dissatisfaction, of fundamental psychological needs.
The above is considered a universal phenomenon shared by all people, regardless of cultural context, gender, ethnic origin, language or other variables. Likewise, it is defended under the argument that all individuals share a nervous system that allows us to respond to chromatic stimulation, and with this, activate various psychological mechanisms
The Luscher test takes into consideration two elements that relate psychological states to the choice of certain colors. These elements are the following:
That is, it starts from considering that all people can perceive different color ranges equally, as well as experience the same sensations through them. It therefore attributes an objective character to the experiential quality associated with each color For example, the color red would activate a stimulating and excited sensation in all people equally, regardless of variables external to the people themselves.
Added to the latter is a subjective nature, since it maintains that, due to the same sensation of excitement that the color red provokes, one person may prefer it and another may perfectly reject it.
Thus, the Lüscher Test considers that the choice of colors has a subjective nature that cannot be faithfully transmitted through verbal language, but that can be analyzed through the seemingly random choice of colors This would allow us to realize how people truly are, how they see themselves or how they would like to see themselves.
Application and interpretation: what do the colors mean?
The procedure for applying the Lüscher Test is simple. The person is presented with a bunch of cards of different colors, and You are asked to choose the card you like the most You are then asked to arrange the rest of the cards according to your preference.
Each card has a number on the back, and the combination between colors and numbers allows for an interpretation process that depends, on the one hand, on the psychological meaning that this test attributes to each color, and on the other, depends on the order in which the person has arranged the cards.
Although the application of the test is based on a simple procedure, its interpretation is quite complex and delicate (as is usually the case with projective tests). Although it is not a sufficient condition, to carry out the interpretation it is necessary begin by knowing the meaning that Lüscher attributes to the choice or rejection of different colors
They are known as “Lüscher colors” because they are a range of colors that have a particular chromatic saturation, different from that found in everyday objects. Lüscher chose them from among 400 different chromatic varieties, and the criterion for his selection was the impact it generated on the people observed. This impact included both psychological and physiological reactions. To structure his proof, he classifies them as follows.
They represent the fundamental psychological needs of the human being. These are the colors blue, green, red and yellow. Broadly speaking, blue is the color of emotional involvement, so it represents the need for satisfaction and affection. Green represents the attitude towards oneself and the need for self-affirmation (the defensiveness of the self). Red alludes to excitement and the need to act and finally, yellow represents projection (understood as the search for horizons and the reflection of an image) and the need to anticipate.
Reporting a pleasant perception in the presence of these colors is for Luscher an indicator of a balanced psychology free of conflicts or repression.
2. Complementary colors
These are the colors violet, coffee (brown), black and gray. Contrary to basic or fundamental colors, the preference for complementary colors can be interpreted as an indicator of experiencing stress, or a manipulative and negative attitude. Although they can also indicate some positive qualities depending on how they are placed. Likewise, the choice of these colors is associated with people who have experiences of low preference or rejection.
The color violet is representative of transformation, but it is also an indicator of immaturity and instability. Coffee represents the sensitive and the corporal, that is, it is directly connected to the body, but as it has little vitality, its exaggerated choice can indicate stress. Grey, for its part, is indicative of neutrality, indifference and possible isolation, but also prudence and composure. Black is representative of renunciation or abandonment, and to a maximum degree, can indicate protest and anguish.
3. The color white
Finally, the white color works as the contrasting color of the previous ones. However, it does not have a fundamental role in the psychological and evaluative meanings for this test.
The position
The interpretation of the test is not completed simply by attributing a meaning to each color. As we said before, Lüscher connects these meanings with the subjective experience of the person being evaluated. This means that the results of the test depend largely on the position in which the person has arranged the colored cards For Lüscher, the latter accounts for the position and direction of individual behavior, which can be Directive, Receptive, Authoritarian or Suggestible.
Said behavior can, in turn, be in a constant or variable position; which varies depending on how the link is established with other subjects, objects and the interests of the individual. The interpretive procedure of the Lüscher Test is carried out based on an application manual which includes different combinations and positions of colors with their respective meanings.
Some criticisms
In methodological terms, for Seneiderman (2011) projective tests have value as a “bridging hypothesis”, since they allow connections to be established between metapsychology and clinical practice, as well as exploring dimensions of subjectivity, which otherwise would not be intelligible. By starting from the ambiguity and the wide freedom of the answers, these tests allow access to elements that are sometimes difficult to verbalize such as fantasies, conflicts, defenses, fears, etc.
However, as occurs with other projective tests, Lüscher’s test has been attributed a “subjective” mode of interpretation, meaning that its interpretation and results They depend largely on the personal criteria of each psychologist or specialist who applies it That is to say, it is concluded that it is a test that does not offer “objective” conclusions, which has generated much criticism.
In the same sense, he is criticized for the impossibility of generalizing his findings, due to the lack of standardization that meets the methodological criteria of objectivity of traditional science. Criteria that support, for example, psychometric tests. In this sense, projective tests have a scientific status that has caused quite a bit of controversy, especially among specialists who consider this type of test as “reactive” and who, in the best of cases, have proposed systematizing them quantitatively.
Thus, this test has been criticized both for lack of criteria that could ensure both its reliability and for the low possibility of reproducing its results. On the other hand, The ideas of functionality and pathology have also been criticized (and the possible reproduction of biases, prejudices or stigmas of various kinds), which theoretically support the interpretations of this test.
