Mood In Everyday Life Research Articles

Social Interactions in Everyday Life of Socially Anxious Adolescents: Effects on Mental State, Anxiety, and Depression

Unfavorable interpersonal behavior in social anxiety disorder (SAD) contributes to the maintenance of the disorder and may also be related to the development of secondary depression. Since there is limited research on daily life behavior in SAD, this study aimed to describe social interaction behavior and analyze the effect of positive interactions on depression, anxiety, and mental state. Data were obtained from the Behavior and Mind Health study (11/2015–12/2016), an epidemiological cohort study of adolescents and young adults (n = 1,180, aged 14–21 years) from Dresden, Germany. Interpersonal behavior, current mental state, anxiety, and depression were assessed eight times per day over four days using smartphone-based ecological momentary assessments. The analyzed subsample consisted of n = 723 participants, comparing 12-month SAD (n = 60) and healthy controls (HC; n = 663). The interaction behavior of participants with SAD did not differ substantially from that of HC in terms of frequency of social interactions, type of interaction partner, and time spent communicating, although they reported fewer real-life interaction partners (SAD: M = 2.49, SD = 4.78; HC: M = 3.18, SD = 6.43; F(17,044) = 23.92, p < 0.001). When comparing mental state, anxiety, and depression after interactions with familiar people to no interaction, no differences were found between SAD and HC. However, interactions with unfamiliar people negatively affected depressive symptoms in individuals with SAD (b = 0.53; SE = 0.25; 95%CI: 0.04–1.03; p = 0.036). In adolescents with SAD, social situations with unfamiliar people seem to be processed in a dysfunctional way, contributing to increased depressive mood in everyday life. This is particularly interesting given the high rate of secondary depression in SAD.

Associations between sedentary time and momentary mood in daily life are independent of contextual factors

Introduction&#x0D; First studies indicate that sedentary time relates negatively to mood in everyday life (Giurgiu et al., 2019). Less is known regarding how these relationships are moderated by contextual factors, such as social situation and environmental location, which are factors that may reinforce or mitigate the negative association between sedentary time and mood and hence may provide potential to intervene upon the negative effects of sedentary behavior. Hence, this study aimed to explore the interplay between sedentary time and contextual factors regarding momentary mood in everyday life.&#x0D; Method&#x0D; We recruited 73 university students (48% female, Mage = 21.64 ±2.52 years, MBMI = 22.88 ±2.26) to participate in an observational ambulatory assessment study. We continuously measured sedentary time and physical activity via a thigh-worn accelerometer for seven consecutive days. Participants filled in an established momentary mood questionnaire up to ten times a day on movement-triggered e-diaries. In addition, they reported their social company (alone vs. with others) and their location (indoor vs. outdoors) during the 15 min time frame preceding the prompt. We analyzed the data using multilevel modeling.&#x0D; Results: Analyzing the 15 min prior the e-diary prompt, main effects models revealed that sedentary time was associated with decreased energetic arousal only (B = -0.57, p &lt; 0.001). Being with others compared to being alone was associated with increased valence (B = 2.96, p &lt; 0.001), energetic arousal (B = 1.93, p = 0.032), and increased calmness (B = 3.89, p &lt; 0.001). Location was unrelated to all mood dimensions. Moderation analysis did not show significant interactions between sedentary time and both the social situation and the location.&#x0D; Discussion&#x0D; Both sedentary time and social company are associated with mood in everyday life, however, in this study, these associations appear to be independent of each other. For energetic arousal, this may indicate that the mechanisms by which sedentary time influences energetic arousal is predominantly physiological (Thyfault et al., 2015), leaving little room for influence from contextual factors. While this study investigated two well-known contextual factors, future studies should expand this research to other contextual factors (e.g., noise assessment, air pollution) and apply more fine-grained objective measures of contextual factors instead of self-report, such as continuous geolocation tracking for the assessment of the environmental location or noise assessment. This may help to identify factors that mitigate the negative effects of sedentary behavior on mood and provide a basis for developing guidelines regarding sedentary behavior.&#x0D; References&#x0D; Giurgiu, M., Koch, E. D., Ottenbacher, J., Plotnikoff, R. C., Ebner‐Priemer, U. W., &amp; Reichert, M. (2019). Sedentary behavior in everyday life relates negatively to mood: An ambulatory assessment study. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, 29(9), 1340-1351. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.13448&#x0D; Thyfault, J. P., Du, M., Kraus, W. E., Levine, J. A., &amp; Booth, F. W. (2015). Physiology of sedentary behavior and its relationship to health outcomes. Medicine &amp; Science in &amp; Exercise, 47(6), 1301-1305. https://doi.org/10.1249/mss.0000000000000518

Media use and emotional distress under COVID-19 lockdown in a clinical sample referred for internalizing disorders: A Swiss adolescents' perspective

The COVID-19 outbreak has profoundly affected adolescents' life. Adolescents with pre-existing psychiatric disorders have been at particular risk of increased mental health problems and problematic media use. 178 patients, aged 12–18 years, referred before the COVID-19 outbreak to child and adolescent psychiatry, participated in an anonymous online survey on the impact of the lockdown on media use and mental well-being. The survey was conducted approximately one month after the first easing of restrictions following a six-week lockdown in Switzerland. Based on self-report, half of the patients had been diagnosed with internalizing disorders (ID; depression or anxiety disorder) and the other half with other disorders (non-ID, e.g. ADHD, autistic spectrum disorder). Patients with ID reported higher emotional distress during the lockdown, and a larger number of patients with ID indicated a deterioration of pre-existing symptoms compared to non-ID patients. Although more patients with ID than with non-ID indicated spending a large amount of time on social media, social media time per day in hours was not significantly higher in ID. Patients with ID indicated a higher impact of media use on well-being and mood in everyday life during the lockdown. Social media time was higher in worsened than in improved non-ID patients, while the opposite was found in ID patients, indicating a possible protective effect of media use at least for some ID patients. The results confirm positive as well as negative associations between mental health, emotional well-being and media use for adolescents with ID during the lockdown.

Consumption of 85% cocoa dark chocolate improves mood in association with gut microbial changes in healthy adults: a randomized controlled trial

Dark chocolate has long been recognized for its mood-altering properties; however, the evidence regarding the emotional effects of daily dark chocolate intake is limited. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the effects of dark chocolate intake on mood in everyday life, with special emphasis on the gut-brain axis. Two different dark chocolates (85% and 70% cocoa content) were tested in this study. In a randomized controlled trial, healthy adults (20–30 y) consumed either 30 g/d of 85% cocoa chocolate (DC85, n=18); 70% cocoa chocolate (DC70, n=16); or no chocolate (control group, CON; n=14); for 3 weeks. Mood states were measured using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). Daily consumption of dark chocolate significantly reduced negative affect in DC85, but not in DC70. To assess the association between the mood-altering effects of dark chocolate and the gut microbiota, we performed fecal 16S rRNA sequencing analysis for the DC85 and CON groups. Gut microbial diversity was significantly higher in DC85 than CON (P<.05). Blautia obeum levels were significantly elevated and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii levels were reduced in DC85 compared to CON (P<.05). Furthermore, we found that the observed changes in negative affect scores were negatively correlated with diversity and relative abundance of Blautia obeum (P<.05). These findings indicate that dark chocolate exerts prebiotic effects, as evidenced by its ability to restructure the diversity and abundance of intestinal bacteria; thus, it may improve negative emotional states via the gut-brain axis.

The association between history of prenatal loss and maternal psychological state in a subsequent pregnancy: an ecological momentary assessment (EMA) study.

Prenatal loss which occurs in approximately 20% of pregnancies represents a well-established risk factor for anxiety and affective disorders. In the current study, we examined whether a history of prenatal loss is associated with a subsequent pregnancy with maternal psychological state using ecological momentary assessment (EMA)-based measures of pregnancy-specific distress and mood in everyday life. This study was conducted in a cohort of N = 155 healthy pregnant women, of which N = 40 had a history of prenatal loss. An EMA protocol was used in early and late pregnancy to collect repeated measures of maternal stress and mood, on average eight times per day over a consecutive 4-day period. The association between a history of prenatal loss and psychological state was estimated using linear mixed models. Compared to women who had not experienced a prior prenatal loss, women with a history of prenatal loss reported higher levels of pregnancy-specific distress in early as well as late pregnancy and also were more nervous and tired. Furthermore, in the comparison group pregnancy-specific distress decreased and mood improved from early to late pregnancy, whereas these changes across pregnancy were not evident in women in the prenatal loss group. Our findings suggest that prenatal loss in a prior pregnancy is associated with a subsequent pregnancy with significantly higher stress and impaired mood levels in everyday life across gestation. These findings have important implications for designing EMA-based ambulatory, personalized interventions to reduce stress during pregnancy in this high-risk group.

Gait Patterns and Mood in Everyday Life: A Comparison Between Depressed Patients and Non-depressed Controls

BackgroundPrevious laboratory findings suggest deviant gait characteristics in depressed individuals (i.e., reduced walking speed and vertical up-and-down movements, larger lateral swaying movements, slumped posture). However, since most studies to date assessed gait in the laboratory, it is largely an open question whether this association also holds in more naturalistic, everyday life settings. Thus, within the current study we (1) aimed at replicating these results in an everyday life and (2) investigated whether gait characteristics could predict change in current mood.MethodsWe recruited a sample of patients (n = 35) suffering from major depressive disorder and a sample of age and gender matched non-depressed controls (n = 36). During a 2-day assessment we continuously recorded gait patterns, general movement intensity and repetitively assessed the participant’s current mood.ResultsWe replicated previous laboratory results and found that patients as compared to non-depressed controls showed reduced walking speed and reduced vertical up-and-down movements, as well as a slumped posture during everyday life episodes of walking. Moreover, independent of clinical diagnoses, higher walking speed, and more vertical up-and-down movements significantly predicted more subsequent positive mood, while changes in mood did not predict subsequent changes in gait patterns.ConclusionIn sum, our results support expectations that embodiment (i.e., the relationship between bodily expression of emotion and emotion processing itself) in depression is also observable in naturalistic settings, and that depression is bodily manifested in the way people walk. The data further suggest that motor displays affect mood in everyday life.

Relationships between incidental physical activity, exercise, and sports with subsequent mood in adolescents.

Physical activity is beneficial for human physical health and well-being. Accordingly, the association between physical activity and mood in everyday life has been a subject of several Ambulatory Assessment studies. This mechanism has been studied in children, adults, and the elderly, but neglected in adolescents. It is critical to examine this mechanism in adolescents because adolescence plays a key role in human development and adolescents' physical activity behavior translates into their behavior in adulthood. We investigated adolescents' mood in relation to distinct physical activities: incidental activity such as climbing stairs; exercise activity, such as skating; and sports, such as playing soccer. We equipped 134 adolescents aged 12-17years with accelerometers and GPS-triggered electronic diaries to use in their everyday life. Adolescents reported on mood repeatedly in real time across 7days, and these data were analyzed using multilevel-modeling. After incidental activity, adolescents felt better and more energized. After exercise, adolescents felt better but less calm. After sports, adolescents felt less energized. Analyses of the time course of the effects confirmed our findings. Physical activity influences mood in adolescents' everyday life, but has distinct effects depending on the kind of physical activity. Our results suggest incidental and exercise activities entail higher post-bout valence compared to sports in competitive settings. These findings may serve as an important empirical basis for the targeted application of distinct physical activities to foster well-being in adolescence.

Breaking Up Sedentary Behavior Optimally to Enhance Mood.

Experimental evidence shows that breaking-up sedentary behavior is positively associated with positive mental health outcomes. However, whether sedentary breaks influence mood in everyday life is largely unknown. Moreover, it is unclear which break patterns are most beneficial to enhance mood. To investigate the degree to which sedentary break patterns influence mood dimensions in everyday life, we conducted an Ecological Momentary Assessment study in 92 university employees over 5 d. We continuously measured physical behavior (physical activity and sedentary behavior) objectively via accelerometers and assessed mood 10 times a day on smartphone diaries. We defined distinct break patterns, such as variations in frequency (number of breaks), duration (length of breaks), intensity (metabolic equivalent), and context (home or work) and used multilevel modeling to analyze the within-subject effects of sedentary break patterns on mood. Break intensity was positively associated with subsequent valence (P < 0.01), energetic arousal (P < 0.01), and calmness (P < 0.05). Break frequency was positively associated with subsequent valence and energetic arousal (all P's < 0.01), but break duration was not associated with mood. Exploratory analyses indicated that breaking-up sedentary behavior was more beneficial at home than at work. These ecologically valid findings suggest breaking-up sedentary behavior as a promising strategy to enhance mood in everyday life. In particular, breaking-up sedentary behavior frequently and intensively, for example, by walking instead of standing, may be most beneficial. We call for future studies to substantiate these accounts and to identify both practical and optimal break patterns among different samples. This evidence informs official public health recommendations aiming to "minimize sedentary time in everyday life."

Environmental light and time of day modulate subjective liking and wanting.

Several studies demonstrated effects of light on affect via projections from the retina of the eye to the circadian clock or via projections to areas involved in mood and reward. Few field studies investigated how naturally fluctuating light levels affect positive and negative mood in everyday life, but none addressed two key components of the reward system: wanting and liking. To elucidate diurnal profiles and immediate effects of dynamically changing light intensity in everyday life, subjective wanting and liking were assessed using experience sampling, while continuously monitoring environmental illuminance. Using a smartphone and light sensors, healthy volunteers (n = 27, 14 females, 23.7 ± 3.8 [M ± SD] years of age) were probed for 1 week, 9 times a day, to rate positive and negative mood, and 6 novel dedicated questions each on subjective liking and wanting. The multiband light spectrum was continuously recorded from sensors worn on the chest and intensities were averaged over the intervals between subsequent probes. Mixed effect models were used to evaluate how time of day and light intensity modulated subjective ratings. A total of 1,102 valid observations indicated that liking and wanting peaked around 6 p.m. and increased, respectively, by 13 ± 4% and 11 ± 4% across an individual's range of experienced light intensities. More traditional mood questions were less sensitive to modulation by light intensity. Combined experience sampling and environmental monitoring opens up the possibility for field studies on light in disorders in which the reward system is highly relevant, like addiction, depression and insomnia. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Neuroticism and emotion regulation through music listening: A meta-analysis

Recent research has found that neuroticism (i.e., trait emotional instability) may dispose people to use music listening as a strategy to regulate their emotions. To estimate the magnitude of this relationship, we performed a meta-analysis (random effects model) of the extant 13 correlational studies ( k = 13) for a total of 2641 participants. Results indicated a significant small-to-medium summary effect ( r =.22, 95% CI [0.17, 0.27]) for the positive correlation between neuroticism and emotion regulation through music listening. Furthermore, there was no evidence of significant heterogeneity in effect sizes across studies. Overall, we conclude that the putative effect of neuroticism on musical emotion regulation is relatively moderate. Findings may suggest that people higher in neuroticism are more prone to use music listening as an accessible resource to regulate their negative emotions or manage whatever affects their mood in everyday life.

Acute and medium term effects of a 10-week running intervention on mood state in apprentices.

Exercise and physical activity have proven benefits for physical and psychological well-being. However, it is not clear if healthy young adults can enhance mood in everyday life through regular exercise. Earlier studies mainly showed positive effects of acute exercise and exercise programs on psychological well-being in children, older people and in clinical populations. Few studies controlled participants' physical activity in daily life, performed besides the exercise program, which can impact results. In addition the transition from mood enhancement induced by acute exercise to medium or long-term effects due to regular exercise is not yet determined. The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the acute effects of an aerobic running training on mood and trends in medium term changes of mood in everyday life of young adults. We conducted a 10-week aerobic endurance training with frequent mood assessments and continuous activity monitoring. 23 apprentices, separated into experimental and control group, were monitored over 12 weeks. To control the effectiveness of the aerobic exercise program, participants completed a progressive treadmill test pre and post the intervention period. The three basic mood dimensions energetic arousal, valence and calmness were assessed via electronic diaries. Participants had to rate their mood state frequently on 3 days a week at five times of measurement within 12 weeks. Participants' physical activity was assessed with accelerometers. All mood dimensions increased immediately after acute endurance exercise but results were not significant. The highest acute mood change could be observed in valence (p = 0.07; η2 = 0.27). However, no medium term effects in mood states could be observed after a few weeks of endurance training. Future studies should focus on the interaction between acute and medium term effects of exercise training on mood. The decreasing compliance over the course of the study requires the development of strategies to maintain compliance over longer periods.

Relationship of negative mood with prefrontal cortex activity during working memory tasks: An optical topography study

Mood has a substantial impact on cognitive functions. Although studies have shown that the interaction between mood and cognition is mediated by the prefrontal cortex (PFC), little is known about how naturalistic mood in everyday life is associated with PFC activity during cognitive tasks. We investigated whether inter-individual variation in perceived mood under current life situations (recent week) is related to PFC activity during working memory (WM) tasks in healthy adults. Levels of positive and negative moods were quantified with the Profile of Mood States (POMS) questionnaire. PFC activities during verbal and spatial WM tasks were measured by optical topography (OT), a non-invasive low-constraint neuroimaging tool, to minimize experimental intervention in participants’ moods. Group-average analysis showed significant activations in the bilateral dorsolateral PFC in both WM tasks. Correlation analysis revealed that the participants reporting higher levels of negative moods showed lower levels of PFC activity during the verbal WM task but not during the spatial WM task. This relationship was significant even after controlling for possible confounding factors such as age, gender, and task performance. Our results suggest that verbal WM is linked with naturalistic negative mood and that the PFC is involved in the mood–cognition interaction in daily circumstances.

Be Active and Become Happy: An Ecological Momentary Assessment of Physical Activity and Mood

The positive effects of physical activity on mood are well documented in cross-sectional studies. To date there have been only a few studies analyzing within-subject covariance between physical activity and mood in everyday life. This study aims to close this gap using an ambulatory assessment of mood and physical activity. Thirteen participants completed a standardized diary over a 10-week period, resulting in 1,860 measurement points. Valence, energetic arousal, and calmness are the three subscales of mood that were assessed. Participants rated their mood promptly after self-selected activities. A multilevel analysis indicates that the three dimensions of mood were positively affected by episodes of physical activity, such as walking or gardening-valence: t(12) = 5.6, p < .001; energetic arousal: t(12) = 2.4, p = .033; calmness: t(12) = 2.8, p = .015. Moreover, the association is affected by the individual baseline mood level, with the greatest effect seen when mood is depressed.

The effect of tryptophan on quarrelsomeness, agreeableness, and mood in everyday life

Abstract. In humans there is an association between low serotonin levels and aggressive behavior, and drugs that increase serotonin function have been used to treat aggression. In monkey alterations in serotonin function seem to influence behavior along the agonistic–affiliative axis, with increases in serotonin function not only decreasing aggression but also increasing the grooming of other animals. Measurement of human social behavior in everyday life has advanced to the stage where it is possible to measure behavior along the agreeable–quarrelsome axis. Therefore we performed two double-blind cross-over studies to compare the effects of tryptophan, the serotonin precursor, with placebo on the social behavior of healthy people. In the first study tryptophan decreased quarrelsome behaviors. In the second study on irritable people tryptophan not only decreased quarrelsome behaviors but also increased agreeable behaviors and improved mood. Our studies suggest that increasing serotonin synthesis with tryptophan moves behavior along the axis that encompasses aggressive, quarrelsome, and agreeable behaviors towards more positive social behavior in healthy people in everyday life. Irritability is a risk factor for various mental and physical disorders. It remains to be seen whether increasing serotonin function in irritable people improves their mental and physical health.

Action regulation in old age: Time samples from everyday contexts

The operation of self-efficacy beliefs was investigated in a group of 81 participants between 73 and 97 years of age with intensive time samples including activities carried out at the moment a signal was received, their subjective difficulty, and concurrent mood in everyday life. In a two-level approach, occasion-level and person-level effects could be modelled simultaneously. Within individuals, productive activities were perceived more difficult, on average, than nonproductive ones. Furthermore, perceived difficulty was lower the more positive concurrent mood was rated. Variance in these intra-individual slopes was partially explained by inter-individual differences in self-belief of efficacy regarding everyday activities.

Pain in Infancy: Individual Differences

Two patterns of reactions to painful medical procedures were found in infancy, i.e., continuous and interval patterns. Also, infants often in a good mood in everyday life (as reported by their mothers) showed pain more briefly after blood sampling, while infants often in a bad mood in everyday life showed pain longer.

Self-focused attention, coping responses, and distressed mood in everyday life.

Self-focused attention, coping responses, and distressed mood in everyday life.

Self-focused attention, coping responses, and distressed mood in everyday life.

Several questions concerning the relation between self-focused attention and depressed mood were examined: (a) Does the association involve global negative affect, rather than sadness per se? (b) is self-focus associated with specific negative affects other than sadness? and (c) does the association occur at the between-subjects or within-subject level? Also hypothesized was that self-focus is associated with coping responses that may perpetuate negative mood. In an idiographic/nomothetic design, 40 male community residents completed daily reports for 30 days. Results suggest that self-focus is linked with global negative mood as well as specific negative affects other than sadness and that the association occurs on a between-persons, rather than a day-to-day within-person, basis. In addition, highly self-focused men reported using passive and ruminative coping styles, which in turn were associated with distressed affect.