The effects of partner extraversion and agreeableness on trust

Olga Stavrova*, Anthony M. Evans, Ilja van Beest

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientificpeer-review

12 Citations (Scopus)
88 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Existing research has documented the social benefits (i.e., higher popularity and liking) of extraversion and agreeableness. Do these positive reputational consequences extend to social dilemma situations that require trust? We found that people do not trust extraverts more than introverts. Instead, people's trust decisions are guided by their partner's level of agreeableness. In a trust game (Studies 1 and 2), individuals were more likely to trust a partner who was described as agreeable (vs. disagreeable); and, in a laboratory study of work groups, participants trusted more (vs. less) agreeable group members (Study 3). Individuals anticipated others' preferences for agreeable partners and tried to come across as more agreeable, but not more extraverted, in social dilemmas (Study 4). These findings suggest that the social benefits of agreeableness (but not extraversion) extend to social interactions involving trust and highlight the importance of target personality traits in shaping trust decisions.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1028-1042
JournalPersonality and Social Psychology Bulletin
Volume49
Issue number7
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2023

Keywords

  • trust
  • extraversion
  • agreeableness
  • trustworthiness
  • group work
  • impression management
  • ONLINE SOCIAL NETWORKS
  • PERSONALITY-TRAITS
  • IMPRESSION MANAGEMENT
  • INTERPERSONAL TRAITS
  • BEHAVIOR
  • POPULARITY
  • DIMENSIONS
  • PERCEPTION
  • LEADERSHIP
  • JUDGMENTS

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