Agreeableness Research: A Narrative Review
Tiffany Field
ABSTRACT
Agreeableness is one of the four positive Big Five personality traits. Agreeableness is characterized by trusting, helpful, kind and compassionate behavior that fosters social harmony as opposed to conflict. Positive effects of agreeableness on feelings include trust and agreeableness characteristics including transcendence, contentment, social integration and emotional reactivity. Positive effects of agreeableness on behaviors include responsiveness, proactive behavior and volunteer service. A decrease in negative behaviors has also been noted including decreased discrimination and conflict. Predictors of agreeableness in this current literature include openness, social skills, empathy and trust. Only two studies have been conducted on inducing the state of agreeableness including being asked to behave in an agreeable way and targeting agreeableness. At least four potential underlying biological mechanisms have appeared in this literature on agreeableness. They include functional connectivity, ventromedial cortical activity, default mode network activation, and cortical microstructural brain network activation.
