Cooperation is a key characteristic of people who score high in agreeableness, as one of their main interests is maintaining social harmony. Their fundamental belief is that people are usually decent, honest, and trustworthy. Therefore,  agreeable individuals find it essential to get along with others. They are willing to put aside their interests for other people. These individuals are helpful, friendly, considerate, and generous. They enjoy helping and contributing to the happiness of others, assist people who require help and tend to have a wide circle of friends.

On the other hand, precisely because they tend to put the interests of others before their own and are willing to compromise on their ideas and ideals if it reduces conflict, people high in agreeableness risk becoming a social doormat at the metaphorical mercy of more individualistic characters. Moreover, their need for affirmation from others and a natural tendency to refrain from being abrasive or contradicting lead to displaying people-pleasing behaviour. Still, these people are at risk of not developing assertiveness and other critical social skills required to succeed in today’s world.

At the other end of the spectrum, individualistic people who score low on agreeableness tend to be competitive, combatant and even antagonistic. For them, peace and social harmony matter little, and they value independence and task completion more. They are less trustful and optimistic than the high agreeableness scorers and prefer to be task-oriented to the detriment of human relationships. They take little interest in others and other people’s problems and don’t care much about their feelings. Thus, they tend to have no problem insulting and belittling others and trying to manipulate them to get what they want.