A PROPOSAL TO CLASSIFY HAPPINESS AS A PSYCHIATRIC-DISORDER

It is Proposed that happiness be classified as a psychiatric disorder and he included in future editions of the major diagnostic manuals under the new name: major affective disorder, pleasant type. In a review of the relevant literature it is shown that happiness is statistically abnormal, consists of a discrete cluster of symptoms, is associated with a range of cognitive abnormalities, and probably reflects the abnormal functioning of the central nervous system. One possible objection to this proposal remains - that happiness is not negatively valued. However, this objection is dismissed as scientifically irrelevant.