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Wednesdays are most depressing day of the week
If you struggled to get up for work on Wednesdays, there could be a good reason – it is the day our mood reaches its lowest point.
Psychologists have found that, on average, people's moods remain about the same on each day throughout the week.
Monday has traditionally been thought of as the most depressing day of the week but according to psychologists, midweek gives more cause for concern in reality.
Wednesday represented the lowest point in the week as people were furthest away from the weekend that has either just gone or is coming up and often feel bogged down with work.
To start their research, the University of Sydney scientists asked around 200 people what they thought their mood would be on each day of the week.
Most said their worst moods were on Monday mornings and evenings but they became increasingly cheerful as the week wore on, with their best moods falling on Friday and Saturday mornings and evenings.
When asked why they believed that Friday and Saturday were best, respondents said they saw them as less-structured days when they could choose how to spend their time.
The psychologists then asked a further 350 people how they felt each day.
They found that, on average, people's moods remained about the same on each day throughout the week.
Mondays were not as depressing as they had feared and Fridays and Saturdays were not as exciting as predicted.
Professor Charles Areni, who led the study, said the day-of-the-week stereotypes stem from a cultural belief that people are generally happier when they are free to choose their activities compared to when they are engaged in paid work.
In reality, he said, weekends do not often see moods soar because they are frequently dominated by productive activities that may require large amounts of energy and begin to feel like work.
"Day-of-the-week stereotypes like Monday morning blues and Thank God It's Friday are largely illusions," he said.
如果每逢周三，你都要经过一番挣扎才肯起床去上班，以下事实也许可以提供很好的解释：周三是一周中情绪最低落的一天。
心理学家发现，平均来看，人们在一周七天中的情绪变化不大。
周一一直被认为是一周中最郁闷的一天，但心理学家称，其实到了一周的中段，让人们烦心的事情更多。
周三之所以是人们一周内心情最差的一天，是因为此时上个周末已经远去，新的周末还未到来，人们常会在这一天感到工作陷入了困境。
在研究之初，悉尼大学的研究人员对约200名受访者在一周内每天的心情进行了调查。
多数人称，他们在周一的早晨和晚上心情最糟糕，但随着周末的临近会逐渐兴奋起来，其中周五和周六的早上和晚上最开心。
在被问及为什么觉得在周五和周六最开心时，受访者称他们觉得这两天比较放松，可以自由支配自己的时间。
之后，心理学家又对350人进行了相同的访问。
调查结果显示，平均来看，人们在一周中的情绪变化并不大。
周一并没有想象中那么郁闷，周五和周六也并不像预想的那样美好。
负责该研究的查尔斯•阿雷尼教授说，人们通常觉得，比起程式化地工作，能够自由支配自己的时间更开心，“一周情绪模式”主要源于这种文化观念。
他说，事实上，到了周末，人们并不一定就会心情大好，因为这两天他们经常要从事一些会耗费大量精力的活动，劳累程度不亚于工作。
他说：“无论是‘灰色星期一’，还是‘谢天谢地，终于到周五了！’这种‘一周情绪模式’其实都是种错觉。”
Vocabulary:
bogged down:陷入泥沼；陷入困境
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