We tested the cross-cultural applicability of Greenberg's (1980) “Indebtedness model” in Japan and United States. We hypothesized that while the major antecedent of indebtedness is the recipient's benefit for American students, those of Japanese students is the donor's cost perceived by the recipient. University students from U.S.A. ( n =151, male=47, female=104) and Japan ( n =88, male=25, female=63) reported their recent experience of being aided by their families, friends, and strangers. They also rated on 75 items of questions concerning the intensities of indebtedness and other emotions they felt on receipt of aid, impression of the donor, and the amount of benefit and perceived donor's cost. Supporting our hypothesis, recipient's benefit was the major antecedent of indebtedness for American students and perceived donor's cost was the major antecedent for Japanese students. We also found positive correlation between the intensities of positive and negative emotions evoked by receiving aid, and a small amount of negative impression of the donor from one's own family only in the Japanese sample.