Unpacking Blue Monday: The 'most depressing day of the year' or just a clever marketing ploy?

In 2024, Blue Monday lands on January 15th. The concept suggests this is when a sense of gloom is most prevalent. But why should this specific day in late January signal such despondency?

Blue Monday first entered the public consciousness in the early 21st century. British psychologist Cliff Arnall is widely recognized as its progenitor. Arnall developed an equation purportedly to pinpoint the "most depressing" day of the year.

The methodology he employed considered various meteorological, economic, and psychological variables. Nevertheless, these are not universally consistent or quantifiable. "The most depressing day of the year" was initially slated for the Monday commencing the last week of January. Subsequently, Arnall altered the date of Blue Monday to the third Monday of January, attributing it to the financial crisis that dominated the first decade of the 21st century.

As for the moniker Blue Monday, it's a nod to the English phrase "feeling blue," which denotes a state of sadness or hopelessness.

From the outset, the idea of Blue Monday as the "saddest day of the year" has garnered skepticism - the scientific community has largely dismissed it as pseudoscience. Years later, the creator of the concept confessed that it was a commissioned ploy by a travel agency aiming to market its services, positing Blue Monday as the ideal day to book a vacation.

Blue Monday has gained traction worldwide despite lacking solid scientific grounding, with global interest continuing unabated.