Mood rings have been around since the 1970s and claim to be able to measure your mood based on changes to your body temperature. But how accurate are they really? Let’s take a closer look at the science behind mood rings and how well they actually work.
What is a Mood Ring?
A mood ring is a ring that contains a thermochromic element – a material that changes color based on temperature. The ring is designed to be worn on the finger, where it can respond to changes in the temperature of the skin.
The most common thermochromic material used in mood rings is liquid crystal. Liquid crystal molecules are arranged in a twisted formation. When exposed to heat, the molecules untwist and reflect light differently, causing the color to change. Lower temperatures cause tighter twisting, resulting in one colored state, while higher temperatures cause looser twisting, resulting in a different colored state.
The ring is set with a clear quartz stone in a metal setting (usually silver or brass). Underneath the quartz stone is a thin sheet of liquid crystal film that rests against the skin. As your skin temperature fluctuates throughout the day, the liquid crystal reacts by changing color. Most mood rings contain crystals that cycle through a spectrum of colors representing different mood states.
How Do Mood Rings Work?
Mood rings work on the premise that variations in your skin temperature can reflect variations in your mood or emotions. Your skin temperature is not constant throughout the day but fluctuates slightly in response to changes in blood flow, which is controlled by your sympathetic nervous system.
When you experience strong emotions like stress, excitement, anxiety, or arousal, your sympathetic nervous system triggers your body’s fight-or-flight response. One effect of this is increased blood flow to your extremities, which raises skin temperature ever so slightly. Likewise, more relaxed or sedate emotional states result in reduced blood flow and marginally cooler skin.
A mood ring purportedly translates these tiny fluctuations in skin temperature into color changes that represent your shifting moods. The color spectrum is designed to reflect emotional states ranging from anxious (warmer) to calm (cooler).
What Do Mood Ring Colors Mean?
There is no universal code for mood ring colors and meanings. However, many mood ring guides reference the following general color interpretations:
- Black – stressed
- Blue – calm
- Green – neutral
- Yellow/amber – anxious, excited
- Brown – nervous
- Grey – sad
- Violet – happy
So in theory, a mood ring could reveal if you’re feeling relaxed or nervous based on whether it turns blue or yellow. But skin temperature alone provides very limited information about mood, so the color meanings are more for fun than anything scientifically based.
How Accurate Are Mood Rings?
There are several reasons why mood rings cannot provide an accurate assessment of your emotions:
- Skin temperature is affected by many factors – While emotions can influence skin temperature, many other factors also come into play. Room temperature, clothing, exercise, consumption of hot/cold beverages, and individual metabolic differences can all impact skin temperature independent of your mood.
- Temperature thresholds vary between rings – There are no standardized temperature thresholds that each color represents. The exact temperatures that trigger color changes can vary widely between different mood rings. Your “happy” color on one ring could indicate “anxious” on another.
- Emotions are complex – Skin temperature provides very limited information about mood. Positive and negative emotions often manifest physically in similar ways. Arousal, stress, anxiety, excitement, passion, anger, and joy can all raise skin temperature, yet have very different emotional meanings.
- Slow response time – Mood rings take a while to react to temperature changes. This means they may display your previous mood rather than what you’re feeling in the moment.
- Needs consistent wear – To work properly, mood rings need to be worn consistently on the same finger. Removing the ring periodically resets it and disrupts its ability to monitor subtle temperature changes.
Scientific Research on Mood Rings
Very little scientific research has been conducted specifically on mood rings. However, some related studies have examined the correlation between skin temperature and emotions:
- A 1982 study found that skin temperature showed some correlation with self-reported anxiety levels. However, it did not correlate strongly with a wider range of emotions.
- A 1990 study concluded there was “no consistent relationship” between hand temperature and mood states.
- A 2020 study recorded “no clinically relevant changes” in skin temperature during induced emotions of fear, anger and sadness.
In summary, scientific evidence suggests skin temperature alone provides very limited insights into your emotional state. Modern wearable tech focuses more on tracking heart rate variability and electrodermal activity for stress and mood tracking.
Can External Factors Affect the Colors?
Yes, many external factors unrelated to your mood can potentially impact a mood ring’s colors. These include:
- – Ambient air temperature
- – Sunlight (can heat up the band)
- – Cold/heat exposure (swimming, gloves, etc)
- – Certain skin products and cosmetics
- – Skin conditions affecting temperature
- – Tightness of the ring band
- – Position/angle of the hand
- – Consumption of hot/cold drinks
- – Physical activities raising temperature
So if your mood ring turns yellow, it could mean you’re anxious, excited, or simply drank a hot coffee a few minutes prior. These external influences further limit the technology’s reliability for identifying moods.
Mood Ring Accuracy: The Verdict
Based on the available evidence, mood rings do not appear capable of accurately assessing emotions. At best, they can only reflect very coarse indications of states like stress or relaxation. But the same color on one ring could have different meanings on another. Overall, mood rings are more of a 1970s novelty item than a credible mood tracking tool according to scientific research.
| Factor | Effect on Accuracy |
|---|---|
| Skin temperature affected by many factors besides mood | Lowers accuracy |
| No standardized color thresholds | Lowers accuracy |
| Emotions manifest physically in similar ways | Lowers accuracy |
| Slow response time | Lowers accuracy |
| Needs consistent wear | Lowers accuracy |
| Minimal supporting scientific evidence | Lowers accuracy |
| Vulnerable to external influences | Lowers accuracy |
Conclusion
While mood rings may change color, the pseudoscience behind their ability to accurately identify emotions is questionable. The many influencing factors beyond mood, lack of clinical evidence, and vulnerability to external disturbances limit their reliability. Mood rings are a novelty that provide more entertainment than credible insight into your shifting emotional states. For tracking mental health, clinically validated wearables that monitor heart rate variability and electrodermal activity are likely to provide more useful biofeedback.
