A Warm Heart and a Clear Head

TLDR

Studies linking weather to mood and cognition have shown inconsistent results, possibly due to seasonal effects and time spent outdoors. Across two correlational studies and an experiment with 605 participants, pleasant spring weather combined with increased outdoor time was associated with higher mood, improved memory, and a broadened cognitive style. These effects were limited to spring; in other seasons, especially summer, hotter weather lowered mood, supporting seasonal affective disorder findings and indicating that springtime pleasant weather lifts mood and broadens cognition after winter deprivation.

Abstract

Prior studies on the association between weather and psychological changes have produced mixed results. In part, this inconsistency may be because weather's psychological effects are moderated by two important factors: the season and time spent outside. In two correlational studies and an experiment manipulating participants' time outdoors (total N = 605), pleasant weather (higher temperature or barometric pressure) was related to higher mood, better memory, and “broadened” cognitive style during the spring as time spent outside increased. The same relationships between mood and weather were not observed during other times of year, and indeed hotter weather was associated with lower mood in the summer. These results are consistent with findings on seasonal affective disorder, and suggest that pleasant weather improves mood and broadens cognition in the spring because people have been deprived of such weather during the winter.