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Science 15 July 1977:
Vol. 197. no. 4300, pp. 291 - 292
DOI: 10.1126/science.560058
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Articles

Science, Vol 197, Issue 4300, 291-292
Copyright © 1977 by American Association for the Advancement of Science

articles

Premenstrual symptoms: a reinterpretation

DN Ruble

Conclusions regarding the physiological basis and disruptive effects of premenstrual symptoms may be biased because of the reliance on self-report questionnaires as a source of data. In order to examine this possible bias, women's perceptions of their cycle phase were separated experimentally from actual cycle phase. Women who were led to believe that they were premenstrual reported experiencing a significantly higher degree of several physical symptoms, such as water retention, than did women who were led to believe they were intermenstrual. Thus, because of these psychosocial influences on symptom reports, it seems necessary to reexamine previous conclusions regarding the magnitude of menstrual-related changes as well as their physiolocical basis.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Premenstrual Symptomatology: Role of Prior Knowledge About Premenstrual Syndrome.
Ma. L. Marvan and C. Escobedo (1999)
Psychosom Med 61, 163-167
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Postnatal gonadal steroid effects on human behavior.
R. Rubin, J. Reinisch, and R. Haskett (1981)
Science 211, 1318-1324
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