Synonyms
Definition
Euphoria is a type of affect that involves positive or elevated mood.
Introduction
Euphoria is a state or symptom of mood or affect that involves the experience of positive mood.
Euphoria
The term has be used to describe a state of “cheerfulness” (Rodgers and Bland 1996), “contentment” (Finger 1998), “intense happiness” (Pearsall 1999), and “extreme happiness and well-being” (Brookes et al. 2004). Although, as it can be seen, definitions tend to vary, it is important to note that euphoria is distinct from a number of other, apparently similar, symptoms of mood and affect. For example, euphoria is different from a manic episode, which is defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th edition (American Psychiatric Association 2013) as including elevated or irritable mood and increased energy that persists for at least 1 week and is accompanied by a number of additional...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington: American Psychiatric Publishing.
Brookes, I., Munro, M., O’Donoghue, E., O’Neill, M., & Thompson, M. (Eds.). (2004). Chambers concise dictionary. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd.
Cohen, E. E. A., Ejsmond-Frey, R., Knight, N., & Dunbar, R. I. M. (2010). Rowers’ high: Behavioural synchrony is correlated with elevated pain thresholds. Biology Letters, 6(10), 106–108.
Cummings, J. L., Mega, M., Gray, K., Rosenberg-Thompson, S., Carusi, D. A., & Gornbein, J. (1994). The neuropsychiatric inventory comprehensive assessment of psychopathology in dementia. Neurology, 44(12), 2308–2308.
Diaz-Olavarrieta, C., Cummings, J. L., Velazquez, J., & Garcia de al Cadena, C. (1999). Neuropsychiatric manifestations of multiple sclerosis. The Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 11, 51–57.
Duncan, A., Malcolm-Smith, S., Ameen, O., & Solms, M. (2015). Changing definitions of euphoria in multiple sclerosis: A short report. Multiple Sclerosis Journal, 21, 776–779.
Finger, S. (1998). A happy state of mind: A history of mild elation, denial of disability, optimism, and laughing in multiple sclerosis. Archives of Neurology, 55(2), 241–250.
Harel, Y., Barak, Y., & Achiron, A. (2007). Dysregulation of affect in multiple sclerosis: New phenomenological approach. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 61(1), 94–98.
Johnson, B. A. (2010). Addiction medicine: Science and practice. New York/London: Springer.
Jones, N., & Sather, R. (n.d.). Online medical encyclopedia: Epilepsy and Seizures. Retrieved from https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/Encyclopedia/Content.aspx?ContentTypeID=85&ContentID=P00779
MacKnee, C. M. (2002). Profound sexual and spiritual encounters among practicing Christians: A phenomenological analysis. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 30(3), 234.
Pearsall, J. (Ed.). (1999). The Oxford concise dictionary (10th ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.
Rodgers, J., & Bland, R. (1996). Psychiatric manifestations of multiple sclerosis: A review. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 41(7), 441–445.
Unknown. (2016, July 7) The wildest celebrations after sporting victories. Retrieved from http://www.msn.com/en-gb/sport/uefa-euro-2016/the-wildest-celebrations-after-sporting-victories/ar-AAhrgns
Wortzel, H. S., Oster, T. J., Anderson, C. A., & Arciniegas, D. B. (2008). Pathological laughing and crying. CNS Drugs, 22(7), 531–545.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Section Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this entry
Cite this entry
Duncan, A.L. (2020). Euphoria. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T.K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24612-3_515
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24612-3_515
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-24610-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-24612-3
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences