The present study examined the role of mood state on self – appraisal of problem solving ability. The subjects were 115 female students (ages 13 to 14) who were randomly assigned to three groups (two experimental and one control groups). In order to induce mood states, three films (happy and sad films for the two experimental groups and documentary film for the control group) were used. Immediately after showing the films the subjects were asked to fill out the Mood Inventory as well as the Problem Solving  Inventory (PSI). The main findings were as follows: The happy group obtained higher scores on self appraisal of problem solving ability than the other two groups. However, there was no significant difference between the sad and neutral groups.

The happy group also obtained higher scores on problem solving confidence and personal control ability than the other two groups: and the mean scores of the sad group on these scales were lower than the mean scores of the neutral group.