Does mood affect judgment: Results from an in vivo observational study

Previous research has examined how mood affects individuals’ judgment. Our study aims to extend this research to evaluate the influence of mood on judgment in vivo. Using a smartphone-based design, we prompted participants (N = 103) three times a day to rate their mood and perform one of three judgment tasks three times a day for one week: (1) evaluate their self-efficacy on a word unscrambling task, (2) identify face emotions, or (3) judge risk by pumping virtual balloons. Our results showed that, contrary to our hypotheses, mood did not have a significant effect on the judgments individuals made. Prior task performance and task trial were significant predictors of self-efficacy; sex and task trial were associated with face emotion recognition; and balloons popped the day prior, and task trial influenced how individuals evaluated risk. The in vivo design of this study is a novel and more ecologically valid than some earlier work, but it is not without limitations, including the self-reported nature of mood, and potential for unmeasured third variable effects. This research raises questions about the validity of lab-based studies of the relation between mood and judgment, and shows the capacity of in vivo research and technology to challenge and enhance our understanding of how mood influences behavior.