Stress buffers and dysphoria in a non-western population

The authors investigated whether generalized self-efficacy (GSE), positive automatic thoughts, optimism, or self-mastery moderated the relationship between stressful life events and dysphoria among students from Guam. The GSE Scale, the Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire-Positive, the Life Orientation Test, the Self-Mastery Scale, the Life Experiences Survey, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire were administered to 63 Guamanian undergraduates twice over 3 months. GSE, optimism, and the GSE x Negative Life Events interaction predicted unique variance in dysphoria. Persons with greater GSE fended to remain nondysphoric even when experiencing higher life stresses, whereas persons with lower GSE tended to become dysphoric under high stress conditions. This is consistent with the hypothesis that GSE may help to buffer the effects of stress among Guamanians. Persons with higher optimism tended to be less dysphoric regardless of the level of stress, compared with persons with lower optimism.