Mood rings have been around since the 1970s and remain popular jewelry pieces today. But do they actually detect your mood? Let’s examine some quick facts about mood rings and how they are supposed to work.
What are mood rings and how do they work?
A mood ring is a ring that contains a thermochromic liquid crystal that reacts to changes in temperature. The crystal is mounted on a metal plate on the top of the ring. As your body temperature fluctuates, the liquid crystal changes color to reflect different emotions based on the colors shown on a mood chart.
Common mood ring colors and emotions they signify:
| Black | Stressed |
| Blue | Calm |
| Green | Neutral |
| Yellow | Happy |
| Brown | Nervous |
| Grey | Sad |
The ring is designed to be worn on the finger so it can detect changes in temperature from blood circulation. When you are feeling calm or happy, more blood flows to the extremities making them warmer. This warmth causes the crystal to reflect blue or yellow colors. When stressed or anxious, blood flow is restricted making fingers cooler, so the crystal turns a darker color like black or brown.
Do mood ring colors actually correlate to emotions?
While the concept seems simple, many scientists argue that mood rings cannot accurately detect emotions. Here are some reasons why:
- Body temperature naturally fluctuates throughout the day which can alter the ring’s color regardless of mood.
- External temperatures like air conditioning can cool down the ring and skew its reading.
- People have different normal body temperatures that will baseline the ring’s color.
- Other factors like exercise and medications can affect blood circulation and temperature.
- Emotions are complex neurological responses that cannot be simplified into color categories.
So while the ring may detect physiological changes in temperature, equating this to specific moods or emotions is likely an oversimplification. However, some studies have shown people report more positive moods when wearing and looking at a mood ring, suggesting a placebo effect may occur.
What do experts say about the accuracy of mood rings?
Most medical and psychological experts agree that mood rings cannot actually detect emotions. Here are some opinions on their validity:
- “Mood rings do not have any scientific basis. Temperature readings are meaningless since normal body temperature varies throughout the day and between people.” – Dr. Amanda Smith, physician
- “Emotions are complex mental states influenced by numerous factors, not just body temperature. Mood rings are a novelty item and cannot diagnose your inner emotional state.” – Dr. Jamie Huang, psychologist
- “There is no research evidence demonstrating mood rings can accurately identify moods. They are more of a toy than a measuring instrument.” – Professor Ryan Davis, biopsychologist
Experts concur mood rings are not founded on proven science or research. At best, they may increase mindfulness of emotions but cannot truly detect them.
What other methods claim to detect emotions?
While mood rings are unscientific, some other technologies show promise for identifying emotions and moods:
| Method | How It Works |
| Facial recognition software | Analyzes facial expressions and microexpressions to detect basic emotions like happiness, anger, fear. |
| Voice analysis apps | Detects tone, pacing and inflection in voice to identify moods. |
| EEG sensors | Measure brainwave patterns associated with emotional states. |
| fMRI | Measures blood oxygen levels in the brain to map neural activity linked to mood. |
| Wearable biosensors | Track heart rate, sweat, respiration to correlate with mood states. |
Early research on these technologies shows some correlations between biofeedback data and emotions. However, results remain modest and cannot perfectly identify moods yet. But future advancements may improve their accuracy and validation.
Conclusion
Based on the available research, mood rings do not appear capable of truly detecting emotions or moods. The premise is an oversimplification of the complex human psyche. While body temperature can give clues to how someone feels, equating this to specific mood colors is unfounded. At best, mood rings may increase self-reflection but have no accuracy in identifying one’s inner emotional state. Other developing technologies show more promise in emotions detection through biometrics. But for now mood rings seem better suited as novel jewelry than a scientific mood detector.
