The Surprising Psychology of Holiday Decorations

This article mainly describes the article about Home decor, and the following content explains the article in depth.

The Surprising Psychology of Holiday Decorations

Last weekend we delighted in the annual ritual of preparing our home for the festive season. With a personal preference for understated elegance, I like to keep things simple. My go-to choices are classic fairy lights, ornaments, and baubles, all within a carefully curated colour scheme of silver and purple. Yet, I soon realised this wasn’t going to cut it. My 4-year-old helper kept asking for inflatable snowmen and life-sized, twinkly reindeer!

While I haven’t (quite) given in just yet, my daughter’s demands led me to reflect on the importance of holiday decorations. Reviewing literature on the topic, I stumbled across an interesting study from 1989, which suggests that holiday decorations are far more than festive embellishments. Decorations may be sending quiet messages about the homeowners and provide insights into their personality and sociability.

Christmas decorations as social signals

In a psychology experiment about holiday decorations, researchers from the University of Utah asked 58 undergraduate students to evaluate a set of 16 photographs, depicting different American homes and front yards. Photos included homes with or without Christmas decorations and homes belonging to residents that had self-reported either low or high levels of social interactions with their neighbours. Participants were asked to rate the sociability of the homeowners based on the photos, noting cues like decorations, upkeep, and the overall "lived-in" look. They were also asked to provide open-ended comments explaining their impressions. The study produced some interesting findings.

Decorations as social cues. Participants consistently rated homes with Christmas decorations as more sociable and cohesive with their neighbours than undecorated ones. Decorations seemed to enhance the home's “warmth,” giving an impression of a family that values connection and community involvement.
A surprising twist: Unsociable homeowners shine brighter. Interestingly, homes belonging to less socially active residents were rated as more open and sociable when decorated than the homes of their more social counterparts. For these less sociable homeowners, decorations appeared to act as an invitation—a way to express a desire to connect with neighbours or signal openness despite limited interactions.

Additionally, it was found that participants’ impressions weren’t formed by decorations alone. Elements such as a home’s upkeep, its “lived-in” appearance (like visible footprints or open curtains), and its overall neatness played a significant role. Decorations amplified these impressions, but they were just one piece of a broader picture. A well-maintained home with thoughtfully placed decorations appeared welcoming, while a messy or neglected home didn’t benefit as much from festive flourishes.

Finally, one group of homeowners received particular attention in the study: so-called “residents in transition.” These were people who didn’t know many of their neighbours but expressed a desire to form connections. By decorating their homes, these individuals effectively communicated openness and an interest in neighbourhood integration. Their efforts didn’t go unnoticed—research participants consistently described their homes as more sociable and inviting than those of non-decorating, unsociable residents.

How to harness the power of holiday decorations

The study’s findings offer several practical insights for anyone looking to foster a sense of community through their home’s appearance this Christmas:

Deck the halls with purpose: Festive decorations signal sociability, but they work best when paired with thoughtful touches like an inviting entryway or neatly trimmed landscaping.
Keep it lived-in: Open curtains, visible signs of activity (like cars or lights), and personalised touches (such as wreaths or garden ornaments) can make a home feel approachable and warm.
Neatness counts: A clean, well-maintained exterior communicates care and attention, which observers link to friendliness.
Stay consistent: Decorations are most effective when they align with other cues, such as the home’s design and upkeep, to create a cohesive message of warmth and openness.

Beyond the lights: What this means for communities

While the findings stem from a relatively small piece of research published over 30 years ago, it is likely that the results still hold true today. Decorations appear to act as a bridge, fostering connections in neighbourhoods where people might otherwise remain distant. For communities, encouraging festive traditions like coordinated street decorations might even strengthen bonds and create a sense of belonging.

For individuals, the message is clear: what you put on display matters. Whether it’s Christmas lights, a front porch swing, or simply a well-maintained yard, these visible signals help shape how others perceive you and your home’s role in the neighbourhood. Christmas decorations don’t just bring joy; they tell a story about the people behind the door—a story of community, connection, and sometimes, the hope for more. So, as you hang your lights this year, consider the message they send and the connections they might help you build. I think I may just have to re-think my own approach to seasonal decorations and add a few additional twinkles to our front door.

Happy decorating—and happy holidays!

What you should learn about home decoration

The foundations and the design principles, furnishing and decorative styles, colour schemes and materials represent some of the elements that you should learn about home decoration, when you decide to change this aspect radically or otherwise.

You don't need a degree in architecture or a masters in interior design: it is just a matter of different “work”.

The home decorator and the interior design are often erroneously thought to be the same, as much as the two figures are very similar in many ways. To highlight the characteristics and differences between each (a casual eye may easily confuse them) you must consider the contexts in which each works and the way in which their work is differentiated.

Interior designer vs home decorators: challenge to the last accessory

The two figures are both professionals, but whilst one is created from precise and formal training (university based), the second is focused on an essentially aesthetic approach, without requiring academic qualifications (that mainly for concerns planning, architecture and other aspects).

In a certain sense, we could define the home decorator as a type of modern artist, who can complete the work of the designer and offer than something more on a visual level. He or she is only called to decorate that which is already in place.

The role of the interior designer

Architectonic studies with specialisation in interior design, internships, research into colour and materials, expertise in the use of professional programmes such as AutoCAD and in design; this is the profile of the modern interior designer. He or she is a figure with a solid and structured formation, and like architects tend to make a name for themselves within a studio before starting their own business.

Their work is total: they plan the space in its entirety from zero, or renovate floor by floor. They mainly work on the functionality of the rooms, furniture and its accessories, lights and other important aspects. If you have bought a new house or an office to restructure, you would entrust it to this figure along with a good architect and an engineer.

Do you want to become your own interior designer?

Download our guide and discover where to star

The role of home decorator

The home decorator is the aesthetic consultant in command: his or her taste and artistic vision can make the spaces of your home unique and special. They are not involved in the structural planning and renovation of spaces. They have not undertaken specific training and literally fall back on their intrinsic decorative skills, focusing on the exterior appearance of things.

They may have undertaken professional courses on colour schemes, planning of spaces, materials and other aspects. They can help you in selecting the style of furnishing, accessories and other aspects mentioned above.

However, he or she is not a fundamental figure such as is the designer, for this reason it is the role that more than any other can be adopted personally, deciding how the living room in which you spend your days or the bedroom where you rest for the night should appear in line with your own tastes, eyes and heart.

Learn about home decoration: elements

Having differentiated the two roles we have come to the central aspect of the discussion. We want to learn about the decoration of the home, every aspect and element.

We start with the choice of style to confer a single and harmonic idea to the entire space: modern or classic, vintage or shabby chic, industrial or country, there are many possibilities. It is obviously a choice that should be taken alongside the designer.

In the second instance, you should evaluate the space and the arrangement of furniture and accessories present, to devise a project that allows you to “distribute” the decoration elements in a balanced manner, in terms of light, colour, materials and accessories, to create the desired effects.

A trick of light

Light is a fundamental element of design and decoration. It works in synergy with the colours of a room, amplifies the spatial perception of space and allows you to focus attention on certain points and zones.

Lighting boasts a versatility based on the multiple sources with which the designer can experiment: natural, upright, wall, ceiling, table, etc. It can be maximised with mirrors, glass objects or gilded fixtures and overall is one of our best friends as it can change the atmosphere and the look of a single room, as you desire (obviously making the correct decisions).

Harmony of colour

The choice of colour palette already occurs in the design phase and reaches a peak in the decoration and embellishment of interiors.

This is because when faced with painted walls and furniture (in any case your choice), the real coloured and characteristic note occurs with the additional of those decorative objects (such as cushions or other type of accessories) that complete the palette and bestow important harmony to the overall look.

Which materials?

It is odd to think that materials play an important part in the decoration of a home. Yet this is the way it is and it is an aspect that is closely connected with the selected style. With the industrial look it is iron, with country it is wood that dominates, with classic it is hardwood, just to name a few examples.

The reason for which when undertaking decoration it is important to remember that certain materials may not be very compatible between each other, such as wood or plastic. It is up to you to use your eyes and assess what comes together best and how to complete the look of your interiors.

A world of accessories

Books and cushions, mats and lamps, vases, would could list hundreds of objects, even less common ones: a lover of sports could even hang paintings with shirts signed by athletes of the past.

The above content is about the Home decor article, if you have any questions, please contact us, thank you for reading