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    Anhedonia

    快感缺失

    Concept
    Also called
    loss of interest or pleasure, diminished interest or pleasure, anticipatory anhedonia, consummatory anhedonia, motivational anhedonia

    What is anhedonia?

    Anhedonia is the inability to experience pleasure from normally pleasurable activities.[1] Diagnostic criteria describe it as markedly diminished interest or pleasure, one of the two core symptoms of a depressive episode; it also occurs in Schizophrenia and other conditions.[1][2]

    Three stages of a reward

    Snack study: lower in depression

    Animal studies: less effort when dopamine is blocked

    Snack study: no different from controls

    In the clinic

    Schematic, not a self-test.

    Select a card for details.
    Schematic, not a self-test. A reward unfolds in stages: anticipating and wanting it, working for it, then enjoying it once it arrives. Anhedonia can lie on the wanting side or on the liking side. The small labels under the cards give research findings; the snack findings come from a single study. Select a part for details. Select a part for details
    Schematic, not a self-test. A reward unfolds in stages: anticipating and wanting it, working for it, then enjoying it once it arrives. Anhedonia can lie on the wanting side or on the liking side. The small labels under the cards give research findings; the snack findings come from a single study. Select a part for details. Save as image (PNG)

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    Key points

    • DSM-IV-TR describes it as less interest in hobbies, “not caring anymore,” or no enjoyment in activities once found pleasurable, without separating lost motivation from lost pleasure.[2]
    • Researchers therefore separate “wanting” (anticipating a reward and working for it) from “liking” (enjoying it once it arrives); animal studies tie dopamine mainly to wanting.[2]
    • In one study, 52 people with depression wanted snacks less than 51 healthy controls on first sight, yet liked them just as much, both on sight and when tasting.[3]
    • Behavioral activation, first developed within CBT, schedules activities to reconnect people with positive reinforcement; a meta-analysis of 26 randomized trials found it effective for depression.[2][4]

    An example

    Ms. Wang used to go to choir every week. This month, when friends ask, she feels it would be pointless and stays home; one time they drag her along, and she ends up enjoying it. That gap between not wanting to go and still enjoying it is what researchers mean when they separate “wanting” from “liking.”[2]

    Misreadings and limits

    Low days are common; ICD-11 says a depressive episode differs from ordinary low mood in the severity, range and duration of symptoms.[1] This page is not for self-diagnosis. If almost nothing has interested you nearly every day for two weeks or more and it disrupts life, see a doctor or mental health professional; if thoughts of self-harm appear, seek help right away.

    If you need help now

    If you’re struggling to cope or having thoughts of harming yourself:

    If you’re in immediate danger, call your local emergency number.

    Psyfield is not a crisis service. Numbers checked October 2026.

    Sources

    1. 1 World Health Organization (2025). MB24.2 Anhedonia; Mood disorders: Depressive episode; 6A20 Schizophrenia. ICD-11 for mortality and morbidity statistics (2025-01 release). View source
    2. 2 Treadway, M. T., & Zald, D. H. (2011). Reconsidering anhedonia in depression: Lessons from translational neuroscience. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 35(3), 537–555. doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2010.06.006
    3. 3 Schulz, C., Klaus, J., Peglow, F., Ellinger, S., Kühnel, A., Walter, M., & Kroemer, N. B. (2026). Blunted anticipation, but not consummation, of food rewards in depression. Cell Reports Medicine, 7(6), 102796. doi:10.1016/j.xcrm.2026.102796
    4. 4 Ekers, D., Webster, L., Van Straten, A., Cuijpers, P., Richards, D., & Gilbody, S. (2014). Behavioural activation for depression; an update of meta-analysis of effectiveness and sub group analysis. PLoS ONE, 9(6), e100100. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0100100

    Last checked against sources: October 28, 2026