Recognising depression in non-human primates: a narrative review of reported signs of depression

Jonas C.P. van Oosten*, Annemie Ploeger, Elisabeth H.M. Sterck

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

Abstract

Major depressive disorder (depression) is a highly heterogenous human mental disorder that may have equivalents in non-human animals. Research into non-human depression teaches us about human depression and can contribute to enhance welfare of non-human animals. Here, we narratively review how signs of depression in non-human primates (NHPs) can be observed based on symptoms of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). Furthermore, we propose diagnostic criteria of NHP depression and we review reports on signs of depression in NHPs. We diagnose an NHP with depression when it shows a core sign (depressed mood or anhedonia) alongside at least three other DSM-5-derived signs of depression. Results show that four out of six observable signs of depression are present in NHPs, occasionally lasting for months. However, only a group of six NHPs in one study met our proposed criteria for a diagnosis of depression. We call for more research into the co-occurrence of depressive symptoms in individual NHPs to establish the prevalence of depression in NHPs.

Original languageEnglish
Article number18766
JournalPeerJ
Volume13
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2025

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
Copyright 2025 van Oosten et al.

Keywords

  • Animal welfare
  • Depression
  • Diagnostic criteria
  • DSM-5
  • Non-human primate

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Recognising depression in non-human primates: a narrative review of reported signs of depression'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this