Baker-Miller Pink experiment
Baker-Miller Pink (or Drunk-Tank Pink, Prison Pink) is a shade of pink that used to reduce the level of aggression by particularly violent prisoners in prisons.
A bit of history
In the late 1960s, U.S. psychologist Alexander G. Schauss made extensive research into the influence of flowers on the emotions and physiology of prisoners at the Naval Correctional Facility in Seattle, Washington.
Of all the colors used, the shade of pink turned out to be the most effective, which was later named in honor of the institute directors Baker and Miller. Schauss pointed out that simply looking at the item painted in the Baker-Miller Pink will lead to a significant reduction in heart rate and slower breathing (especially after physical activity).
Can pink prison cells calm?
In 1979, Schauss convince the prison authorities to paint prison cells in pink and monitor the number of conflicts in order to determine its effect on prisoners.
Военно-морское исправительное учреждение в Сиэтле, штат Вашингтон
Thus, according to the report, after the renovation of the interior on March 1, 1979, no cases of unpredictable or hostile behavior occured. Baker-Miller Pink used to decorate prison cells, psychiatric wards, youth clinics and sober-ups. But later color impact studies have shown that the calming effect of pink only lasts 15-30 minutes.
In parallel, at Santa Clara Prison in Maricopa County, Arizona, the experience of using pink to paint interiors was the exact opposite — prisoners became noticeably more aggressive if they were kept in the pink room for a long time. Despite this confusion, the prison authorities quickly found an alternative solution — to repaint the walls in calmer tones and force prisoners to wear pink underwear. The same path was followed in a prison in the American city of Grovetown, Georgia, where prisoners have been dressed in pink uniforms since 2015.
Since then, Baker-Miller Pink used in some American prisons. In its equivalent — a paler, softer version of the pink — “Cool Down Pink” — since 2013 has been painting prison cells in Switzerland.
Despite this, the calming effect of pink is disputed to this day. More about critical research on the topic here
Pink soccer team locker rooms
The guest locker room at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa, USA, is painted ceiling-to-floor in pink. Decision belongs to the head coach of the Iowa Hockey team, Hayden Fry. After hearing that pink makes people passive, Fry decided to repaint the dressing room for the visiting teams in order to weaken them on the field.
The guest locker room at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa, USA, is painted ceiling-to-floor in pink. Decision belongs to the head coach of the Iowa Hockey team, Hayden Fry. After hearing that pink makes people passive, Fry decided to repaint the dressing room for the visiting teams in order to weaken them on the field.
Today, answering the question about the sense of such tactics, the management of the Kinnik stadium says that the pink locker room is just a funny tradition, which they are not going to abandon.
