“New research indicates that decreased cravings for pleasure may be at the root of a core symptom of major depressive disorder. The research is in contrast to the long-held notion that those suffering from depression lack the ability to enjoy rewards, rather than the desire to seek them.

The research, led by Vanderbilt psychologists Michael Treadway and David Zald, was published Aug. 12 by the online journal PLoS One.

“This initial study shows that decreased reward processing, which is a core symptom of depression, is specifically related to a reduced willingness to work for a reward,” Treadway, a graduate student in psychology, said.

Decreased motivation to seek and experience pleasurable experiences, known as anhedonia, is a primary symptom of major depressive disorder. Anhedonia is less responsive to many antidepressants and often persists after other symptoms of depression subside. However, understanding the different components of anhedonia – the desire to obtain something pleasurable versus experiencing pleasure – has been difficult for researchers to determine in humans.

“In the last decade and a half, animal models have found that the neurotransmitterdopamine, long known to be involved in reward processing, is involved in craving or motivation, but not necessarily enjoyment,” Treadway said. “To date, research into reward processing in individuals with anhedonia has focused on enjoyment of rewards, rather than assessing the drive to work for them. We think this task is one of the first to do that.”             READ MORE AT THE LINK BELOW>

http://www.physorg.com/news169316755.html

I think BOTH the desire to experience pleasure and the ability to experience pleasure are significantly reduced.  How would you develop a ‘normal’ desire to experience pleasure-if the “reward”, the pleasure is not significant for you ?  Then perhaps it is one way for some people and another for others. What do you think?     Diane