Blue is often considered one of the most popular colors. It is associated with qualities like trust, loyalty, wisdom, confidence, intelligence, faith, truth, and heaven. With these symbolic meanings, it’s no surprise that blue is also linked to friendship. But why exactly is blue considered a friendship color? Here’s a closer look at the history and psychology behind blue as a color connected to camaraderie.
The Meaning Behind Blue
To understand why blue is associated with friendship, it’s helpful to start with what the color generally symbolizes. Here are some of the most common connotations of blue:
| Trust |
| Loyalty |
| Wisdom |
| Confidence |
| Intelligence |
| Faith |
| Truth |
| Heaven |
As you can see, many of these qualities are also attributes we associate with good friends. Friends are loyal, trusting, honest, and supportive. The color blue evokes a sense of comfort and security – exactly what we hope to find in our friend relationships.
Blue Throughout History
Looking back through history, blue has long been tied to friendship in myths, legends, and stories. Here are a few examples:
– In Greek mythology, blue is the color associated with Zeus, leader of the gods. He was known for his wisdom and fairness in relationships with gods and mortals.
– In many stories, the sky is blue. The vast, open sky watches over the world below in a protective, all-encompassing way. This creates a feeling of reassurance similar to the support of a good friend.
– Light blue is reminiscent of clear water. Just as water is refreshing and life-giving, friendships can refresh our spirits and give life meaning.
– The blues and greens of nature – sky, sea, forest – are restorative. Time shared enjoying nature with friends has a healing, calming effect.
So historically, blue has been connected to relationships characterized by wisdom, care, nourishment, and restoration. Clearly, the foundation linking blue and friendship has long been there.
Blue in Psychology and Culture
Looking now at more contemporary associations, research has found blue has a number of relevant psychological effects:
| Produces feelings of calmness and relaxation |
| Lowers stress |
| Decreases depression |
| Creates a sense of peacefulness and tranquility |
These psychological impacts connect well to healthy friendships. Friends provide a calming presence in our lives; talking with friends can help lower stress and depression. Good friends create a sense of peacefulness in their support.
In many modern cultures, blue continues to link up to friendship through common symbols and imagery:
– Blue ribbons are worn to show solidarity and support for causes. The blue ribbon means you stand behind something together with others.
– In web design and app interfaces, blue buttons signal trustworthy actions like “Save”, “Submit”, and “Link”. Blue is the color of moving forward in relationships.
– Light or sky blue are very common colors for social media logos like Facebook, Twitter, Vimeo, and Messenger. Social media facilitates friend connections.
So psychologically and culturally, blue promotes the attributes and actions that build strong friendships.
Studies Confirm Blue Increases Trust and Cooperation
Recent studies have directly tested the impact of the color blue on feelings of trust and camaraderie:
– In a University of British Columbia study, participants played an investment game wearing either blue or green. Those wearing blue were more likely to trust their partner with shared money.
– Another study had participants view screens set to either a blue or green background. When shown blue, they were more likely to rate potential partners as trustworthy.
– Groups working on creative tasks showed more cooperation and teamwork when the workspace had blue décor and lighting.
– Blue makes people more likely to work toward shared goals vs individual interests – an essential skill in friendships. In studies, blue results in more instances of “we” vs “me” pronouns used.
So across situations, exposure to the color blue seems to increase behaviors linked to friendship – trust, cooperation, reciprocity, teamwork. This confirms that blue has tangible, measurable impacts related to camaraderie.
How the Brain Responds to Blue
Neuroscience is uncovering why the brain may forge connections between blue and friendship. Here are some ways blue specifically activates areas of the brain:
| Triggers calming neurotransmitters like serotonin |
| Lowers threat response from amygdala |
| Activates areas linked to openness and verbal communication |
| Increases dopamine, related to social bonding |
Through these mechanisms, exposure to blue seems to put the brain in an ideal state for building trust and community. It reduces fear, eases communication, and promotes bonding. In this way, blue works at a core neurological level to facilitate friendships.
Conclusion
Across history, cultures, psychology, and neuroscience, blue is strongly associated with friendship. This seems linked to blue’s inherent ability to evoke calmness, openness, trust, cooperation, and reliability. While almost any color can represent friendship in the right context, blue seems especially universal in its camaraderie symbolism. So next time you’re participating in a trust exercise, creative collaboration, or team-building event, make sure the color blue is somewhere nearby! Having blue around is likely to grease the wheels of friendship and contribute to relationship success.
