Original article (in Serbian) was published on 16/1/2024; Author: Milica Ljubičić
The concept of “Blue Monday,” often touted as the most depressing day of the year, is in reality a marketing gimmick. This idea, which gained traction from a 2005 British travel agency campaign, lacks scientific backing. Despite being widely reported by media globally, there’s no evidence to support that the third Monday in January, or any specific day, universally induces gloom.
In Serbia, it’s become customary to see articles about “Blue Monday” each third Monday of January. This pattern continued this year, with numerous Serbian web portals echoing the claim on January 15. While many headlines declared it the year’s most depressing day, some outlets offered advice on overcoming this so-called “Blue Monday,” whereas others debunked it as a nearly two-decade-old marketing ploy, not grounded in science.
The concept was created back in 2005 as part of the marketing campaign of the British travel agency Sky Travel.
The notion of “Sad Monday” is credited to Welsh psychologist Cliff Arnal, who was once a part-time lecturer at the University of Cardiff. Arnal reportedly amalgamated various factors such as weather conditions, post-holiday expenses, unfulfilled New Year’s resolutions, and the number of days until the end of the holiday season. According to Snopes, Arnal employed an “algorithm of sadness” and determined that January 24, 2005, was the most depressing day of the year. Ironically, this date was actually the fourth Monday of that year, as per the 2005 calendar.
In a 2010 interview with Britain’s The Telegraph, Arnal described his process of devising this concept. Initially, he was asked to identify the optimal day to book a summer vacation.
“But when I started thinking about the motives for booking a holiday, reflecting on what thousands had told me during stress management or happiness workshops, there were these factors that pointed to the third Monday in January as being particularly depressing … but it is not particularly helpful to put that out there and say ‘there you are’.”
“I’m pleased about the impact it if it means people are talking about depression and how they feel but I’m also encouraging people to refute the whole notion of there being a most depressing day and to use the day as a springboard for the things that really matter in your life,” he said.
Samar McChutcheon, an Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at Ohio University, has described the “Blue Monday” concept as a mere marketing trick, as reported by Forbes.
She explained that the travel agency “wanted to increase business by claiming they had found the most depressing day of the year and were hoping it would encourage customers to travel more during this time.”
Forbes notes that it is not clear to what extent this trick succeeded in business development, but notes that the “Blue Monday” notion has outlasted the travel agency that created it.
Forbes points out that contrary to the formula, not everyone is destined to feel the same way on the third Monday in January. “That day can be joyful for some people. Undoubtedly, some people will meet the love of their life, give birth to a child, win an award, be promoted (…) No day of the year is universally good or bad for everyone – not even election day”.
“It could be a super joyous occasion for many people. Undoubtedly, some people somewhere will meet the love of their lives, give birth to children, win some kind of award, hear of a major promotion (…) no single day of the year is universally great for everyone or universally terrible for everyone—not even election day.”
McChutcheon cautions that the “Blue Monday” concept risks trivializing the struggles of those with clinical depression. It perpetuates a notion that people might feel down simply because they believe they should, on a predetermined day.
In 2015, Snopes addressed the claim of a scientifically determined “most depressing day,” stating that there is no scientific basis for such an assertion. According to their report:
“No studies or evidence have proved any one calendar date is more gloomy than any others, and the formula linked with the calculation of such a date has no real scientific basis.”
Snopes highlighted criticism of the concept, noting concerns that attributing depression to transient causes like incoming bills or the end of holidays could harm those suffering from clinical depression, by tacitly suggesting that they can be cured by methods such as booking vacations and buying houses.
Despite being exposed as a marketing tactic soon after its introduction in 2005, Snopes observed that the narrative of the most depressing Monday continued to be exploited by various companies to promote goods or services during the post-holiday winter period.
By the way, according to Snopes, Arnal later calculated the supposedly “happiest day of the year” used by an ice cream company.
Additionally, Snopes mentioned that Cliff Arnal, the originator of the “most depressing day” concept, subsequently calculated a “happiest day of the year,” which was used by an ice cream company .