Positive Emotion and Reward Disturbance in Mood Disorders

Each month The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation hosts a Meet the Scientist Webinar featuring a researcher discussing the latest findings related to mental illness. In May, 2026, the Foundation featured Dr. June Gruber of the University of Colorado Boulder. Description: We know that positive emotions motivate us to pursue important goals, savor experiences, counteract the cardiovascular effects of stress, and maintain vital social bonds. However, a relatively untouched question remains: Can positive emotions also be a source of dysfunction in particular contexts, or when not appropriately managed? Dr. Gruber will discuss her lab's work to delineate the nature of positive emotion disturbance in people with and without a history of mood difficulties. By studying healthy people, people at risk for mood disorders, as well as adults and adolescents with mood disorders, she seeks to develop new ways of understanding positive mood disturbance as well as treatments to enhance emotional well-being and sustainable happiness. Learn more at: https://bbrfoundation.org/event/posit... Visit us on the web: https://www.bbrfoundation.org If you like this presentation, please share it!