Loading...
We normally are inclined to engage in activities that make us feel better when we feel low and to do things that are useful but not necessarily mood-enhancing when we feel good, a phenomenon called mood homeostasis. To examine the degree to which mood homeostasis is impaired in depression, researchers analyzed data on self-reported moods during daily activities from more than 28,000 people (mean age, 28) from western European countries and 30,000 people (mean age, 58) from China, India, South Africa, Ghana, Russia, and Mexico.
In the western European sample, mood homeostasis was stronger in people who reported positive moods. Exercise was the most frequently cited mood-increasing activity. In the other sample, people with histories of major …