Two years after the beginning of the war in Bosnia, 265 refugee students were assessed with the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI)& compared with a sample of 195 Slovenian students. Bosnian refugees showed significantly less depressive symptoms despite very high rates of posttraumatic stress symptoms. Slovenian adolescents more often expressed the wish to kill themselves. Results indicate that association between traumatic experiences & depressive symptoms is not inevitable, & that other factors including culture & context influences must be taken into account.