From the Guidelines
Increasing agreeableness through interventions such as mindfulness-based programs and positive psychological interventions can lead to improvements in psychological well-being, cardiovascular health, and overall quality of life. To achieve this, individuals can engage in various activities, including:
- Mindfulness-based stress reduction and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, which have been associated with small to medium effects on stress, depressive symptoms, and anxiety 1
- Positive psychological interventions, such as imagining and writing about a better future, recalling positive life events, and planning and performing acts of kindness, which can improve indicators of psychological well-being and reduce depression 1
- Practicing mindfulness meditation for 10-15 minutes daily to increase emotional awareness and reduce reactivity
- Engaging in activities that promote positive affect, such as gratitude journaling and volunteering for causes they care about
- Developing empathy and compassionate communication skills through perspective-taking and active listening These approaches can lead to sustained effects on well-being and depression, with benefits extending to cardiovascular health and overall quality of life 1. Key benefits of increasing agreeableness include:
- Improved psychological well-being and reduced stress, anxiety, and depression
- Enhanced cardiovascular health, including lower blood pressure and improved disease self-management
- Increased emotional awareness and reduced reactivity
- Stronger social connections and more positive relationships
- Improved overall quality of life and well-being.
From the Research
Effects of Increasing Agreeableness
- Increasing agreeableness can have a positive impact on therapy outcomes for patients with borderline personality disorder, as shown in a study where agreeableness was linked to better outcomes in a general psychiatric management-based treatment 2.
- Targeting agreeableness through interventions can also reduce levels of the dark triad traits, such as Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy 3.
- Agreeableness can facilitate the crossover of work engagement from one individual to another, with high agreeableness intensifying this effect 4.
- While not directly related to the effects of increasing agreeableness, research on mindfulness and cognitive-behavioral therapy suggests that these interventions can be effective in reducing social anxiety symptoms and improving related outcomes 5.
- Agreeableness can moderate the effect of aggression-related cues on behavior and cognition, with individuals high in agreeableness less likely to engage in aggressive behavior and more likely to recruit prosocial thoughts in response to aggression-related primes 6.
Key Findings
- Agreeableness is linked to better therapy outcomes for patients with borderline personality disorder 2.
- Interventions targeting agreeableness can reduce levels of the dark triad traits 3.
- Agreeableness facilitates the crossover of work engagement and intensifies this effect when individuals have high levels of agreeableness 4.
- Agreeableness moderates the effect of aggression-related cues on behavior and cognition, promoting prosocial thoughts and reducing aggressive behavior 6.