Max Lüscher

Max Lüscher was born in Basel, Switzerland on 9 September 1923. After receiving his Swiss "Matura", comparable to a diploma, he focused on studying psychiatry and achieved his doctorate in the areas of philosophy, psychology, and the philosophy of law. Lüscher completed his dissertation on "Color as an aid in psychological diagnosis". This project was chosen as the summa cum laude by his professors. After this, working as a psychotherapist, Lüscher created his first color test which was published in 1947. This test used color cards to determine the current emotional state of the test-taker. From 1961 to 1965, Lüscher lived in Berlin and continued his career as a psychotherapist. Lüscher was noted for his guest lectures and training seminars for physicians. The "Lüscher Color-Diagnostics" are now used in several universities across the world.

The test colors from the Lüscher Color-Diagnosis chosen based on favoritism. The test-taker chooses the card color they like best and then orders the rest from most-preferred to least-preferred. Numbers are printed on the backside of each card, and after the test-taker orders them, the examiner turns them over and references an accompanying book that contains all of the different number combinations and their meaning. Lüscher argues that the subject's choice of color shows the state of their psychosomatic and emotional status and how they feel about themselves. Lüscher relates to his four fundamental colors to the following fundamental categories: • Blue: Contentment • Feeling of belonging, the inner connection and the relationship to one’s partner. • "How I feel towards a person that is close to me" • Green: Self-respect • Inner control of willpower and the capacity to enjoy. • "The way I want to be" • Red: Self confidence • Activity, drive and the reaction to challenges. • "How I react to challenges" • Yellow: Development • Attitude of anticipation, attitude towards future development and towards new encounters. • "What I expect for the future" A 1984 comparison of the Lüscher color test and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory found little agreement between the two tests, prompting the authors to urge cautious use of the former.