The Ubiquity, Importance, and Assessment of Agreeableness–Antagonism

Abstract

Abstract Agreeableness–Antagonism (A-A) is a fundamental component of almost every major model of personality, personality disorder, and psychopathology. Rationally derived and empirical models of A-A yield an overall domain capturing one’s interest in and ability to connect with others in a reciprocally beneficial manner with lower-order factors related to callousness versus compassion, distrust versus trust, grandiosity versus modesty, combativeness versus affability, and deceitful/manipulativeness versus sincerity. This chapter reviews how this A-A factor fits in models of personality, personality pathology, and psychopathology; its structure; assessment options across various self-report inventories; its role in several important personality disorder constructs, including psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism; and its centrality as a correlate/predictor of many forms of antisocial behaviors.