Scott Alexander proposes a theory of depression as a recalibrated happiness set point, drawing parallels with fever and anorexia, to explain why depressed people seek out sad stimuli. Longer summary

Scott Alexander explores the puzzling behavior of depressed people preferring sad music, despite it making them feel worse. He proposes a theory based on control theory and set points, comparing depression to conditions like fever and anorexia. The post suggests that depression might involve a recalibrated happiness set point, where the body defends an abnormally low mood through both biological and behavioral mechanisms. Scott also discusses potential research directions and connects this theory to predictive coding concepts. Shorter summary