Monday, undoubtedly, holds the title for being the most despised day of the week among employees in the traditional workforce. Waking up abruptly to the blaring sound of an alarm at 6 a.m., braving the wrath of irate drivers in traffic, and maneuvering through a sea of half-asleep commuters all contribute to making the cherished weekend feel like a distant memory. Fortunately, science has stepped in to validate our disdain for Mondays and is diligently working towards unraveling the mystery behind this collective sentiment. The explanation behind this widespread aversion might lie in its impact on our mood and overall health. Numerous studies have confirmed that anxiety levels, blood pressure, and the likelihood of experiencing cardiac events all tend to surge on this particular day.
Job Satisfaction on Mondays
Monday blues may be a common phenomenon, but it turns out that employee dissatisfaction extends beyond just the first day of the week. A study conducted by the Institute for Social and Economic Research explored job satisfaction levels using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and made some interesting findings. According to their research, both Mondays and Sundays tend to bring about lower job satisfaction and higher levels of depression compared to other weekdays. Interestingly, stress levels remain heightened during the middle of the week, but significantly drop during the weekends.
How Your Mood Can Be Affected by Mondays
A study conducted by the Journal of Applied Social Psychology investigated the impact of mood on individuals throughout the week. The experiment involved participants self-reporting their emotions, and it revealed interesting findings regarding the so-called “Monday blues”. The control group, which was intentionally influenced to feel negatively about Mondays, experienced fewer positive emotions compared to other groups. This study highlights the significance of personal expectations in shaping our mood, as those who anticipated a negative Monday had a lower level of positivity.