Kleptomania is defined by the following diagnostic criteria such as recurrent failure to resist impulses to steal objects that are not required for personal use or for their monetary value; elevating sense of tension immediately before committing the theft; pleasure, gratification, or relief at the time of committing the theft; the stealing is not committed to express anger or vengeance and is not in response to a delusion or a hallucination; the stealing is not not better accounted for by conduct disorder, a manic episode, or antisocial personality disorder. Kleptomania is also characterized by an anxiety driven urge to perform an act that is pleasurable in the moment but causes significant distress and dysfunction. Kleptomania has been thought-out to be an anti-depressive behavior because of its high rate of comorbidity with depression. Kleptomania can be seen as a subject’s mis-adaptation to a depressive mood state and, as such, the disorder could be context dependent.
