The influence of color on the progression of intellectual events in systems with different types of immersion

In a real physical environment, color has a significant impact on cognitive events. However, will this impact persist when a cognitive event is transferred to a virtual environment? The purpose of this article is to systematize the information presented in relevant publications regarding the influence of color on the occurrence of cognitive events in environments with different types of immersion (non-immersive, semi-immersive, and fully immersive) based on an analytical review. The selection of sources was carried out using keywords through search platforms (Web of Science, Semantic Scholar) and scientometric databases (PubMed, Scopus). In forming the list of sources, a theoretical sampling was used, aimed at identifying the state of research in three thematic clusters: (1) preservation of color in virtual reality; (2) presence and strength of color impact in environments with different types of immersion; and (3) the influence of various color characteristics on the occurrence of cognitive events, primarily hue, lightness (perceived brightness), and saturation. The conducted research showed that regardless of the environment (physical or virtual), the impact of color stimulation on the occurrence of cognitive events persists. However, in different types of environments, the same color stimuli exert differing effects on the occurrence of cognitive events, indicating that conclusions drawn in one environment cannot be used to explain how people perceive color in another. Moreover, the influence of various chromatic characteristics (hue, brightness, saturation) in color perception across different types of environments transforms non-linearly, which can be explained by not only physical and physiological factors but also psychological ones.