The Oxford Handbook of Positive Emotion and Psychopathology

This comprehensive academic volume reframes our understanding of mental health by exploring the complex relationship between positive emotions and psychological disorders. Moving beyond traditional deficit-focused models, the collection examines how joy, contentment, and other positive states interact with and sometimes exacerbate conditions like bipolar disorder and anxiety. The research presented challenges simplistic assumptions that positive emotion universally benefits mental health, instead revealing nuanced patterns where timing, intensity, and context dramatically alter outcomes.

What distinguishes this work is its systematic investigation of positive emotion dysregulation—how too much positivity or poorly timed positive affect can contribute to clinical conditions. Clinical psychologists and researchers will find particularly valuable the evidence-based frameworks for understanding when positive emotional experiences become maladaptive rather than therapeutic. This handbook fundamentally advances the science of emotion by demonstrating that both excessive and diminished positive emotion play crucial roles in psychopathology, ultimately offering a more balanced perspective on emotional health.