Primary colour terms ("black", "white", "red", "green", "yellow", and "blue") are more fundamental in colour language than secondary colour terms ("pink", "purple", "orange", "brown", and "grey"). Here, we assess whether this distinction exists in the absence of language, by investigating whether primary colours attract and sustain preverbal…

Analyzes susceptibility of two African nationalities and American subjects to the Muller-Lyer illusion and suggests that the selective attention hypothesis fails to explain all cross-cultural differences, though instructional set may modify susceptibility. Tables and bibliography. (RW)