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Allure
She's a summer lover. How about you?
According to popular belief (not to mention popular music), there's long been a link between mood and weather. Some of us can't stand the rain. Others aren't happy unless we can feel the warm glow of sunshine on our shoulders.
But does rain really make us blue? And does the sun really cheer us up? A new study in the journal Emotion explored this popular belief by surveying nearly 500 adolescents and their mothers and found that for some of us, weather does indeed have a direct affect on our mood.
"We identified a group of 'Summer Lovers,' who were happier, less fearful and less angry on days with more sunshine and higher temperatures and less happy and more anxious and angry on days with more hours of precipitation," says Dr. Tom Frijns, a psychologist at Utrecht University in the Netherlands and co-author of the study.
Frijns and his colleagues also identified a group of so-called "Summer Haters," who were less happy and more fearful and angry when the temperature and the percentage of sunshine were higher and happier and less fearful and angry with more hours of precipitation.
Cue "Singing in Rain" for this group of rain lovers.
A third group, which Frijns called "Rain Haters" was also identified. As implied by the name, this group felt angrier and less happy on days with more precipitation.
Summer Lovers comprised 17 percent of the group of adolescents, while Summer Haters weighed in at 27 percent. Rain Haters made up 9 percent of the group with the rest of the test subjects falling into a group they labeled Unaffected, i.e., neither rain nor snow nor sleet nor sun seemed to affect the mood of this group of potential postal workers.
Interestingly enough, the study also found evidence that "weather reactivity" runs in families.
"Summer Loving mothers more often had children who were also classified as Summer Lovers than would have been expected by chance," he says. "Similarly, the observed frequency of Rain Hating mothers with a Rain Hating child was twice as high as the expected frequency on the basis of chance."
Frijns believes his own moods are affected by the weather, although he himself doesn't seem to fall into any of the four study categories.
"I feel better on warm sunny days than on the dark and rainy ones, which unfortunately outnumber the warm and sunny ones this summer here in the Netherlands," he says. "But then again, I can sometimes really enjoy a good rain shower or thunderstorm."
The weather makes us do funny things. Examples:
- SAD in the summer? Sunshine depression rare, but real
- Why some wear a sweater, no matter the weather
Want more weird health news? Find The Body Odd on Facebook.
Leave a Comment:
So 47% are not affected AT ALL (I bet the president had a 47% approval rating) this really is an odd ball story, I have to assume the magazine "Emotion" (who in the hell reads THAT?) just wanted some free press, assuming they didn't pay MSNBC to have it published.
I guess I am a huge oddball since summer weather, extreme heat and consistent sunny days often make me feel depressed and anxious. I long for fall and winter when I can shut the door and stop worrying about the lawn being mowed, how my flowers look and if my hair is going to frizz up once I walk outside...is it just me?
I'm with you on that! I'm one of the summer haters for sure. I love fall and winter and I'm a lot happier when it rains.
I'm with you! I hate the summer; the heat, the humidity, the inability to sleep under blankets without roasting, the sunshine burning my pale skin (even with SPF 1000+), the inescapable smells that summer brings.
The happiest I've ever been was when I lived in Scotland. It rained all the time. I LOVED it!!!
No. no, I'm a summer hater, too. I love the rain and my depression really returned with a vengence this summer with the heat wave. When I lived in South Africa, there were no clouds from April or so to October and I'd wake up and it was another damned fine day. I hated it. at least it was winter then and cooler.
the only weather I can stand is anything between 70 and 75 degrees, not sunny, and not particularly rainy. I feel like crap the rest of the year.
I fall into the "Summer Lover" category which is ironic since I live in one of the rainiest parts of the nation. I mean it rained pretty much until August this year and we just had our 1st and only day of temps over 90 this year last Saturday.
Let me guess.......you live in Portland OR?
Summer and heat just make me grumpy. I am much happier when it rains or snows.
I can't agree more about Summer and the the heat making me grumpy! Trouble is around Phoenix it's Summer for about 8 Months of the Year! Actually it's more like "Hell" for about 3 of those Months over the last several Years. I'd love some rain, but I will pass on any sign of snow though. Been there, done that!
It's a combination of biochemical reaction (light wakes us up in the mornings), and learned responses (no playing out in a thunderstorm, kids). Add it up, and you have people who adapt to specific environments and do better in those environments.
Summer Lovers: beach-goers, certain sports lovers, warm-latitude residents
Winter Lovers: skiers, snowboarders, Christmas obsessives, cold-latitude residents
Rain Lovers: Don't know any.
The haters should try the opposite category; for instance, Summer-Haters should try higher latitudes, and vice versa. Rain haters should stay out of Washington State. :)
What about those of us who re Fall lovers only?
"Rain haters should stay out of Washington State. :)" Don't forget Oregon! I love my state, but good lord... :-)
My daughter is a rain lover. Normally a fall/winter lover, I was a big rain lover while I lived in El Paso, TX. Sunshine almost every day of the year. It was monotonous. I like some variety.
when it is hot, i long for cool ( not cold ), and when it is cold, i yearn for heat and sun, i guess us humans are rarely content when it comes to the weather! i grew up in new england, and i now live in gulf coast MS, i will take the heat over new england cold anyday; had enough snow and ice to last several lifetimes. my goal is to become a snowbird!!
I HATE hazy, hot, and humid. I'd rather be too cold then too hot. But my mother was the opposite.
There's probably some truth in the weather. What about the state of conditions in the world? I think that too affects us along with the weather. We live in a troubled world. How will our problems be solved?
Ok - duh. We have known this for a long time. Where did SAD come from (Sesonal Affective Disorder)? Researchers have known for years that weather has an affect on the brain, more specifically on depression and mood... nothing new.
I have always had the theory that when you were born also had an affect on what type of weather you enjoyed. Most of the people I know love the season they were born in but hate the others.
I agree with this. I lived in Missouri for the first 20 years of my life, and wintertime (cloudy/rainy/snowy/grey days) depresses me. As soon as it's sunny I'm great--have a smile on my face, always happy. I moved down to the Gulf Coast in Texas a few years ago and haven't had those "cloudy day blues" very often!
I wouldn't say I am a rain hater, but have lived in NW Oregon since 1977. Sometimes the weeks of grey and rain can be unbearable. I have found that if I stay busy with family activities or hobbies that I don't have time to sit and dwell on how crappy it is outside.
It's been over 100 degrees for almost 60 days. I have no energy and have turned into a b*t*h. Weather definatly affects your mood!
Moving from Phoenix,Az to Oregon.can"t wait for the rain
I love rainy, overcast days. I feel my best during those times. When I wake up with sunshine and singing birds, I think, "Blech."
I'm a summer lover, usually. Grew up in Florida, but now I live in Oklahoma. This summer we've broken the state record (set in 1980) for days with temps over 100 degrees, and many if not most of them have been over 110 degrees. It's definitely been oppressive even for me.
This research apparently only compared sunny days vs rainy days. I do find that I'm less depressed when I "get more photons," as my husband calls it. But I'm also more depressed in winter, even on sunny days. So I'd have to say I'm not sure the research done for this article covered all the bases.
I love the rain more than the sun. I also love the wind and the snow. It must because I am crucified to this world, like Jesus. On the Cross, there is no greater blessing, than to feel the rain, the wind, and the snow, whereas the sun can only hurt you! All Christians should feel that way!
The only thing I like about cold weather is that when my hair is not clean or I've done a bad hair coloring job, I can wear a hat to cover my hair!