You suspect a patient may show affective incontinence. Before revealing the answer, decide how you would assess for this.

Ask about sudden, often intense episodes of laughing or crying, and specifically whether the patient feels able to control or suppress them once they begin, since a largely or entirely absent ability to hold back the display is the defining feature. Ask what triggers these episodes, since they can be brought on by minimal or unrelated stimuli, or can arise with no clear trigger at all. Ask about the inner feeling accompanying the display, since the outward show is frequently disproportionate to, or entirely disconnected from, any corresponding inner feeling of amusement or sadness. Take a careful physical and neurological history, given the strong association with organic and neurological causes, which makes this a particularly important sign to prompt physical assessment.