What is effect of weather on happiness?

Question

I am looking for someone to answer who has lived a place like boston and then moved to a nice climate like southern California or Arizona. I hate the cold and my social life suffers as i usually stay indoors if it is under 45 degrees. I am happy when i do activities outdoors like going to the beach/pool or running, golf, baseball etc. I cant do that in boston for 6 months a year. I am going to college in southern cal or somewhere with a nice climate after i graduate from high school next year.

Answer 1

I found an article on this-
So your candidate lost, and you're in a foul mood. What are you going to do about it? A new study suggests a possible prescription for emotional relief:

As soon as a sunny day comes your way, get outside for at least 30 minutes.

Researchers have tried repeatedly over the years to show some correlation between weather and mood, with mixed and usually unimpressive results, but a study of 600 persons across the United States shows that spending a little time outside on a nice day can make a difference.

The effect isn't "huge," says psychologist Matthew Keller, lead author of a study in an upcoming issue of the journal "Psychological Science," but it's significant.

Measuring Mood
So many things affect mood, like elections and personal expectations, that weather isn't likely to be a major player, Keller says. But three different studies all came up with the same results. It can make a difference.

Keller was working on his doctorate at the University of Michigan when he began wondering how much effect the weather has on moods.

"Michigan is one of the cloudiest states in the country," he says. "The winters are long and very cloudy. You never see the sun."

So awhile back he buzzed down to Mexico for a little vacation, and discovered that the sun was still up there.

"It made me realize that that's what life is all about. Life has color, life is fun. I tended to forget that during the winters up in Michigan."

So he teamed up with Michigan psychology professors Barbara Frederickson and Oscar Ybarra "to see if there's some sort of interaction" between weather and mood.

It's a tough thing to measure, especially in the industrial world where people spend an average of 93 percent of their time indoors, so the researchers set up three different tests. The first two consisted primarily of asking the participants how much time they had spent outside that day, and then checking with the local weather bureau to correlate their moods with the weather. The results depended largely upon the participants describing their own moods to the investigators.
In the third test, however, the researchers established controls on the participants to reduce the effect of certain activities unrelated to the weather, like exercise. Some of the participants walked for 30 minutes around a track. Others walked in a city park for the same length of time. And the rest walked on a treadmill inside, so all three groups were exercising.

Numerous studies have shown that regular exercise improves mood, as well as health, and this phase of the project was designed to eliminate that factor, since all of the participants were exercising.

The researchers found that when the participants were outside on a warm, pleasant day, their moods improved. For most, 72 degrees turned out to be just about perfect.


I hope that helps!!

Answer 2

I can actually relate totally to your concern here.

I grew up in the Kansas City area, and it wasn't until I went to college at the Univ of Arizona in Tucson that I realized just how much weather affects one's mood. I remember waking up early to get to 8am classes that first semester in the fall, and generally being a little cranky when I got up. But when I stepped outside to walk to class, where the sun was just beaming every day, and the temps were virtually never cooler than 65, it always seemed to cheer me up. With the many cloudy and dreary days I'd known from living in the midwest, it was a profound change. Granted, there were other reasons I was happier in college than in high school, but the beautiful desert climate definitely played a part.

It's great that you're attuned to this, and I think you'll notice a mood difference when you attend school somewhere out west. That's not to say it never gets cool or chilly on the coast - certainly some days can feel like that. But way more often than not, it's very nice, and you'll wonder why anyone puts up with worse weather.

Answer 3

Weather totally affects mood/happiness! I live in KC, MO where it can snow one day and be shorts weather the next, followed by a tornado! Can't predict the weather! I've lived in SOCAL where it's nice every damn day and you're in such a better mood, you can do outdoor activities all the time! It's a livelier and energetic atmosphere! Even if you're staying indoors, just waking up to a bright sunny day compared to a rainy dark day makes a big difference immediately! Weird how that is but my wife goes through a mild depression in the winter. Cold sux!

Answer 4

Seasonal mood variations are believed to be related mostly to light, not temperature. For this reason, SAD is prevalent even in mid-latitude places with mild winters, such as Seattle and Vancouver. People who live in the Arctic region are especially susceptible due to the effects of polar nights. Prolonged periods of overcast weather can also exacerbate SAD.

SAD can be a serious disorder and may require hospitalization. The symptoms of SAD mimic those of dysthymia or clinical depression. At times, patients may not feel depressed, but rather lack energy to get out of bed and do things. Norman Rosenthal, MD, pioneer in SAD research and author of Winter Blues: Everything You Need to Know to Beat Seasonal Affective Disorder, has described SAD as “an energy crisis.”[1] He has estimated that the prevalence of SAD in the adult US population is between 1.4 percent (in Florida) and 9.7 percent (in New Hampshire).

Various etiologies have been suggested.[2] One possibility is that SAD is related to a lack of serotonin and that exposure to full-spectrum artificial light may improve the condition by stimulating serotonin production, although this has been disputed.[3][4] Another theory is that melatonin produced in the pineal gland is the primary cause,[5][6] since there are direct connections between the retina and the pineal gland. Some studies show that melatonin levels do not appear to differ between those with and without SAD. However, mice incapable of synthesizing melatonin appear to express "depression-like" behaviors[7][8] and melatonin receptor ligands produce antidepressant-like effect in mice.[9]

Although Dr. Rosenthal first called this disorder "winter blues", this term is more often used to describe a milder form of SAD experienced by a greater number during the winter. This blue feeling can usually be dampened or extinguished by exercise and increased outdoor activity, particularly on sunny days, resulting in increased solar exposure. (Most people get less outdoor exercise during the winter.) Connections between human mood, as well as energy levels, and the seasons are well-documented, even in healthy individuals. Particularly in high latitudes (50°N or S) it is common for people to experience lower energy levels.

Answer 5

lots. books use it each and every of the time (pathetic fallacy) and it in many circumstances contributes to the characters temper. many people discover that once it rather is moist and raining, they sense lots greater depressed as you are able to no longer do lots outdoors and you're trapped indoors. on the different, while it rather is warm and sunny, you in many circumstances discover which you're happy and smiling on the grounds which you are able to spend time outdoors. this is generally shown in little ones books, additionally, because of the fact the solar is smiling and the while it rather is raining the everybody is gloomy and gloomy. wish this helps :-)