Happy and Sad Mood Priming Effects on Memory of Emotional and Non-emotional Photographs

Abstract

Aims: In this study we were interested in the effect of happy and sad mood on the memory of emotional (happy and sad) and non-emotional photographs. Study Design: A 3 (mood: happy, sad, or control) x 3 (photograph type: happy, sad, and neutral) mixed factorial design was used. Mood was the between-subjects factor and photograph type was the within-subject factor. Photograph memory was the dependent variable. Place and Duration of Study: College students enrolled at Coastal Carolina University in Conway, South Carolina, USA, between February 2013 and April 2013 served as research participants. Methodology: Participants (n = 111) were randomly asked to either write about the happiest, saddest, or an average day in their lives. Next, participants viewed 18 photographs (6 happy, 6 sad, and 6 neutral) for 10 seconds each in random order and reported the descriptions of as many photographs as they could remember. Results: Participants in the happy mood condition remembered the least overall (45.7%) and participants in the sad mood condition remembered the most overall (55.7%). Participants in the sad mood condition remembered significantly more photographs than participants in the happy mood condition (P = .02). Overall, participants remembered more sad photographs than happy photographs (P = .006) or neutral photographs (P = .004). Compared to the control condition, being in a sad mood slightly increased memory for sad photographs and increased memory for neutral photographs, but did not change memory for happy photographs. Compared to the control and sad mood conditions, being in a happy mood decreased memory for all types of photographs. Conclusion: This study shows that being in a sad mood may narrow attention to improve memory of photographs, while being in a happy mood may broaden attention and obstruct memory of photographs. Regardless of mood state, participants also remembered more sad photographs than happy and neutral photographs. In the future, more research is needed with different priming methods, stimuli, and group sizes.