Children's Perception of Munsell Colors

This study examined perception of Munsell notation color by seven third-graders and three college adults (both with normal color vision) and three children (from the same family) who were red-green color blind. The stimuli varied in terms of Munsell Hue (red, green, and purple), Munsell Value (brightness), and Munsell Chroma (saturation). Each S judged the dissimilarity of 325 color pairs (from 26 stimuli). The data were analyzed via individual difference multidimensional scaling that defined a common perceptual space for the group. The results indicated that the third-graders’ color perception was like that of the adults. The color circle was reproduced, as were dimensions based on Munsell Value and Chroma. The color deficient children's data did not fit into that common space. Their perception was guided primarily by the brightness of the stimulus. In sum, the data indicated that, for the domain of Munsell colors, results obtained from adults concerning the dimensionality of the color space could be applied to young children (as long as they have normal color vision).