Forgiveness, rumination, and depression in the United States and Korea: A cross-cultural mediation study

Although substantial research has separately investigated forgiveness, rumination, and depression in the United States, few studies have investigated all three constructs in the same sample and we know of no studies that have examined how forgiveness, rumination, and depression are interrelated across cultures.

To address this issue, we conducted a cross-cultural study wherein 204 and 297 healthy young adults from Korea and the United States, respectively, completed the Heartland Forgiveness Scale, Ruminative Response Scale, and Beck Depression Inventory-II.

Compared to US participants, Korean participants exhibited more forgiveness, similar levels of rumination, and slightly more depression. Two-group structural equation models revealed that forgiveness was directly related to depressive symptoms, and that forgiveness was indirectly related to depressive symptoms through rumination, in both the United States (proportion mediated = 0.363) and Korea (proportion mediated = 0.394). This indirect association did not differ across cultures.

Considered together, these results suggest that forgiveness appears to have beneficial effects on depression that are mediated through forgiveness-related reductions in rumination, and, importantly, that these effects are similar across cultures.