カラー映像によるストレス緩和効果の研究

Abstract

Recent scientific findings have elucidated the influence of stress upon immune suppression. Our study aims to establish a method of stress reduction, which can be used easily and effectively to reduce stress in patients suffered from cancer or chronic illness. For this purpose, we focused on the effects of colored light which may play reduce stress through the its effects on the autonomic nerve system and the endocrine system. We used our original colored images in 5 colors (pink, yellow, blue, green, red), and examined the effects of them on psychological states of examinees by using a questionnaire ; Terasaki's method of Mood Adjective Check List. We applied these questionnaires to 97 students. We found that exposure to a series of 5 types of colored images decreased negative emotions (for example, anxiety, boredom, and shock) significantly (p<0.01), and increased positive emotions (for example ease, comfort and friendliness) (p<0.01). We also found that each particular color of image induced its own specific emotion. These results suggested that the color images can reduce stress and might be a useful aid for patients.