Study, 1991
How does mood change throughout 2 weeks in women with PMS compared to women without PMS?
Women with PMS experienced significantly greater mood changes over 2 weeks compared to women without PMS, showing much larger ups and downs in mood from day to day.
What they did
65 women participated: 15 with PMS, 10 with depression, 16 with borderline personality disorder, and 24 without these conditions. All rated their mood twice daily (morning and evening) for 14 days. Researchers analyzed how much moods changed day to day and from morning to evening.
What they found
Women with PMS showed significantly greater mood variability over 14 days compared to women without PMS. All four groups differed from each other on every mood measure except morning-to-evening changes. Women with depression had the lowest overall mood ratings.
What it means for you
Women with PMS naturally experience larger mood swings over time compared to women without PMS. However, the study tracked only 14 days, not a full menstrual cycle, so we do not know if the full cycle produces the same pattern.
15
women with PMS
14
days of mood tracking
65
total women studied
About the study
- Original title
- Mood variability: a study of four groups
- Authors
- Cowdry RW, Gardner DL, O'Leary KM et al.
- Journal
- The American journal of psychiatry
- Year
- 1991
- Study design
- Study
- Participants
- 65
- What was tested
- None
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1176/ajp.148.11.1505
Topics
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