The color test is an assessment tool sometimes used by employers during the hiring process to evaluate a candidate’s personality, cognitive thinking style, and preferences. The basic premise behind the color test is that certain colors are associated with particular personality traits and tendencies.
How Does the Color Test Work?
The typical color test presents the candidate with a series of color cards or swatches and asks them to rank or choose their preferred colors. The colors available on the test are specifically chosen because research has linked them to distinct patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving.
Some of the more common color associations are:
| Color | Personality Traits |
| Red | Excitement, Strength, Passion |
| Orange | Creativity, Unconventionality, Risk-Taking |
| Yellow | Optimism, Clarity, Extroversion |
| Green | Harmony, Growth, Balance |
| Blue | Stability, Peace, Introversion |
| Purple | Royalty, Luxury, Ambition |
So if a candidate gravitates towards bold, energetic reds and oranges, the interpretation would be that they are action-oriented go-getters who think outside the box. Alternatively, someone who favors calm blues and greens is likely more reserved, cooperative, and laid-back.
What Do Employers Look for in Color Test Results?
Employers use the insights gleaned from the color test to gauge how well a candidate’s temperament, motivations, and thinking style match the demands of the open position and align with company values and culture.
Here are some of the factors employers may look for when assessing color test results:
- Leadership Potential – Do the color preferences suggest a bold, decisive personality suited for management roles?
- Team Orientation – Do the colors indicate a harmonizing, collaborative disposition?
- Innovation – Do bold, unusual color choices hint at a penchant for imagination and creativity?
- Attention to Detail – Do neutral, subdued colors reflect precision and analytical thinking?
- Drive – Do powerful, energizing color selections denote ambition and passion?
- Adaptability – Is there a balance of stimulation-seeking and stability-oriented colors?
- Integrity – Traditional, respectable color selections may point to upstanding character.
By comparing test results to the qualities needed for the job, employers aim to gain insight into the candidate’s potential fit.
What Colors Are Best to Choose on the Test?
There are no universally “best” or “worst” colors to select on the color test. The optimal approach is simply to answer honestly about your true color preferences.
However, if aiming to tailor responses to a specific role, here are some color selection strategies:
- Leadership Roles – Pick commanding colors like red, purple, black.
- Creative Jobs – Select innovative colors like orange, yellow, green.
- Team Player Positions – Opt for amenable colors like green, blue, white.
- Technical Jobs – Favor precision colors like blue, gray, brown.
- Sales Roles – Choose energetic colors like red, orange, and bold shades.
Focusing on colors aligned with the target job’s most essential requirements can help create an impression of fit. But again, genuine and thoughtful color choices will provide the employer with the most accurate insights.
What are the Benefits of Using the Color Test?
When used ethically and professionally, the color test offers some valuable upsides as part of the hiring process:
- Unbiased Insights – Unlike overt personality tests, the color assessment is more subtle and harder to deliberately manipulate or “game.” This allows employers to form authentic impressions.
- Well-Rounded View – The color evaluation looks beyond just skills and experiences to provide a more holistic perspective of the individual.
- Memorable Experience – The interactive and creative nature of the color test provides a positive, engaging candidate experience.
- Scientific Backing – The color test is based on decades of research linking color associations with psychological traits and states.
By tapping into subconscious color preferences, employers can gain an additional layer of insight to build a complete picture of a candidate.
What are the Limitations of the Color Test?
While the color assessment can add value to the hiring process, it also has some drawbacks to consider:
- Subjective Interpretation – Linking colors to personality and job fitness requires making inferences that may involve bias.
- Context Dependent – People’s color associations can vary based on culture, experience, and context.
- Narrow Focus – A color test only measures specific personality aspects and may overlook other relevant traits.
- Lack of Transparency – Candidates often don’t understand how their color choices are being evaluated.
- Gaming Potential – Savvy test-takers may deliberately provide false color preferences they perceive as desirable.
For these reasons, responsible employers use the color test only to supplement other assessments and get a tentative feel for the candidate’s temperament.
What are Some Sample Color Test Questions?
Color tests can take many different forms, but often use questions like these:
- Rank the following colors from your most favorite to least favorite: red, blue, green, yellow, black, white.
- Select the color that most reflects your personality: orange, brown, gray, purple, maroon.
- Match each word to the color you most associate it with: Passionate, Calm, Energetic, Professional, Creative.
- Choose the colors that most make you feel: Relaxed, Excited, Focused, Confident, Curious.
- Select all the colors that appeal to you out of: Pink, Gold, Lime Green, Navy, Beige.
Options may include primary, secondary, neutral, bold, subtle, warm, cool, and metallic colors to provide a diverse spectrum of associations to draw from.
What are Some Red Flags in Color Test Results?
While assessing color preferences is far from an exact science, there are some potential red flags employers may watch out for:
- Avoiding all warm, stimulating colors may signal risk aversion.
- Choosing only muted, depressing colors could indicate negativity or lack of passion.
- Selecting a narrow range of colors may suggest inflexibility.
- Favoring challenging colors like black exclusively could denote aggression.
- Ignoring professional colors like blue may raise concerns about maturity or judgment.
However, any red flags should be considered along with the candidate’s full experiences, skills, and actual behaviors from interview interactions.
How are Color Tests Administered?
Color tests are administered in a few different formats:
- In-Person – Candidates are given physical color cards or chips and asked to make selections.
- Online – Interactive color questions are incorporated into online pre-employment assessments.
- During Interviews – Hiring managers ask color preference questions along with other verbal interview queries.
- Implicit – Candidates are presented with color stimuli and subconscious reactions are measured.
The approach chosen depends on the type of job, number of applicants, and resources available to the employer. Virtual or interview-based tests are the most common in modern recruiting.
Should Candidates Be Concerned About the Color Test?
In general, the color assessment is not something candidates need to stress over. As long as employers use it ethically as one limited tool to form a broad impression, it is unlikely to make or break most hiring decisions.
To prepare for a color test, simply review common color associations and reflect on your true preferences. But don’t worry about trying to outthink the test or providing false answers. Focus instead on showcasing your qualifications during the rest of the process.
With reasonable expectations of its capabilities, the color test can be an interesting way for both employer and candidate to gain self-insights from the hiring experience.
Conclusion
The color test is an offbeat but potentially useful part of the hiring toolkit when used responsibly. By signaling personality tendencies and dispositions, color preferences can offer employers additional perspective on how candidates may fit specific roles and cultural needs. But candidates should not feel pressured to “pass” the color test, which is best viewed as a jumping off point for meaningful conversations about both parties’ values and goals.
