Recently I have done some research on color theory and color psychology and have learned of an interesting principle in this field. This is the concept of evolutionary psychology applied to color theory, and more specifically the color red. 

It turns out that the human race's preference and reaction to certain colors is rooted in ancestral development. I had previously assumed that all responses to color were based around cultural norms and basic societal tendencies, but this is not always true. For example, red is a uniquely powerful color in our world. It can represent anything from romance to anger to luck to danger. Because the world was not originally saturated with color as it is now, colors like red were far more rare, and thus impactful to early man. When it did appear, it usually did so in the form of a flushed face, healthy skin, or blood, stimuli that all required immediate action and attention. A flushed face could mean danger in the form of an attack, the lack of a reddish complexion could represent illness, and blood is present both in life and death, things held extremely dear to humanity's ancestors. These situations all call for urgency and attention, and it is a commonly held belief that these associations were carried from the instinctive minds of our predecessors to our modern subconsciouses. So when a more current iteration of the color presents itself, be it in the form of a stop sign or a Target logo, it demands our attention at a genetic level. The theory of evolutionary psychology applied to color association is extremely useful when applied to design for this reason, and I hope to utilize colors rooted in humanity's common past to put more strength into my work.