CULTURAL AND GENDER DIFFERENCES IN RESPONSES TO DEPRESSIVE MOOD - A STUDY OF COLLEGE-STUDENTS IN GHANA AND THE USA

The present study examined the role of culture as a potential moderato r of gender differences in response to depressive mood in 315 college students from two separate nationalities (203 from Ghana and 112 from the U.S.A.). Participants from both cultural groups completed the Resp onse Styles Questionnaire (RSQ; Nolen-Hoeksema & Morrow, 1991) which a ssesses individual differences in coping with depressed mood. Results from conducting a series of analyses of variances indicated a signific ant gender (male vs female) x culture (Ghanaian vs American) interacti on for one of the four sub-scales of the RSQ. Specifically, culture wa s found to moderate the effects of gender on scores for Dangerous Acti vity response style. Also a significant cultural as well as gender eff ect was found for Rumination. The present findings support the importa nce of cultural sensitivity in research and psychotherapy. (C) 1998 El sevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.