ABSTRACT
If the meaning of life is to be found in contact with diverse, stable sources of positive reinforcement, then life loses its meaning when such contact is lost. In BA, depression is seen as a result of environments that do not produce contact with diverse, stable sources of positive reinforcement, and there are many pathways to this end. In this Point, we discuss the primary process of direct removal of positive reinforcement. To the extent that depression is to be interpreted literally, as in behavior being ``pressed down'' or reduced, it is relatively easy to see how this is clinically relevant.
