Survey study, 2001
Do women experience mood disturbance before their period, as premenstrual syndrome suggests?
Most women (86%) reported having premenstrual symptoms, but this study found no clear evidence of mood disturbance in the menstrual cycle phase when PMS typically occurs.
What they did
213 women and 73 men completed questionnaires measuring their positive and negative mood on a specific day and in general. Women tracked when their last period started using a diary.
What they found
86% of women reported some degree of PMS. However, there was no evidence of mood disturbance in the data that matched PMS patterns, suggesting women's reported PMS mood changes did not appear in their measured mood.
What it means for you
Even though most women think they have PMS mood symptoms, this study did not detect the expected mood changes. Women may overestimate PMS mood symptoms, or the questionnaire may not have captured the changes. The study is limited because it did not control for how much mood naturally varies between people.
213
women
86%
reported premenstrual symptoms
73
men
About the study
- Original title
- PMS: Moods, measurements and interpretations
- Authors
- Jacqueline Reilly, John Kremer
- Journal
- The Irish Journal of Psychology
- Year
- 2001
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 213
- What was tested
- None - questionnaire-based survey.
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1080/03033910.2001.10558270
Topics
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