Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology 30(5): 506-530 The relationship between level of depressive symptoms, ruminative response style and sensitivity to facial expressions of emotion was investigated among female university students. Participants were able to distinguish between facial expressions (of happiness and sadness) that were and were not associated with experience of a corresponding affective state. For sadness, there was a negative relationship between rumination and emotion sensitivity, and a positive relationship between rumination and bias. Results are discussed in terms of the influence of individual differences on sensitivity to the emotional state of interaction partners.