Key Findings
• The pay gap between agreeable and disagreeable males is significantly larger than the gap between agreeable and disagreeable females. That is, there is a“benefit” of being (moderately) disagreeable as a male, but this “benefit” is minimal for females.
• Employees are subject to gender stereotypes in the workplace. Males are expected to exhibit masculine qualities, including disagreeableness. Females are expected to exhibit feminine qualities, including agreeableness. When one gender defies such stereotypes, the employee can be perceived as deviant.
• Males who are agreeable are disadvantaged (vs. disagreeable males) for two reasons: first, agreeableness is negatively correlated with income; secondly, they defy the male stereotype of being assertive and disagreeable

Center for Advanced Human Resource Studies

English

Key Findings • The pay gap between agreeable and disagreeable males is significantly larger than the gap between agreeable and disagreeable females. That is, there is a“benefit” of being (moderately) disagreeable as a male, but this “benefit” is minimal for females. • Employees are subject to gender stereotypes in the workplace. Males are expected to exhibit masculine qualities, including disagreeableness. Females are expected to exhibit feminine qualities, including agreeableness. When one gender defies such stereotypes, the employee can be perceived as deviant. • Males who are agreeable are disadvantaged (vs. disagreeable males) for two reasons: first, agreeableness is negatively correlated with income; secondly, they defy the male stereotype of being assertive and disagreeable.No18_ResearchLink_Livingston_02112012.pdf: 7525 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

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Do Nice Guys -- And Gals -- Really Finish Last? The Joint Effects of Sex and Agreeableness on Income

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CAHRS ResearchLink Center for Advanced Human Resource Studies (CAHRS) 
2-2012 
Do Nice Guys -- And Gals -- Really Finish Last? The Joint Effects of 
Sex and Agreeableness on Income 
Center for Advanced Human Resource Studies 
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Do Nice Guys -- And Gals -- Really Finish Last? The Joint Effects of Sex and 
Agreeableness on Income 
Abstract 
Key Findings 
• The pay gap between agreeable and disagreeable males is significantly larger than the gap between 
agreeable and disagreeable females. That is, there is a“benefit” of being (moderately) disagreeable as a 
male, but this “benefit” is minimal for females. 
• Employees are subject to gender stereotypes in the workplace. Males are expected to exhibit masculine 
qualities, including disagreeableness. Females are expected to exhibit feminine qualities, including 
agreeableness. When one gender defies such stereotypes, the employee can be perceived as deviant. 
• Males who are agreeable are disadvantaged (vs. disagreeable males) for two reasons: first, 
agreeableness is negatively correlated with income; secondly, they defy the male stereotype of being 
assertive and disagreeable. 
Keywords 
pay gap, employees, workplace, agreeableness, personality, predictions 
Comments 
Recommended Citation 
Center for Advanced Human Resource Studies. (2012, February). Do nice guys -- and gals -- really finish 
last? The joint effects of sex and agreeableness on income (CAHRS ResearchLink No. 18). Ithaca, NY: 
Cornell University, ILR School. 
This article is available at DigitalCommons@ILR: https://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/cahrs_researchlink/20 
 193 Ives Hall, Ithaca,  NY 14850 | 607.255.9358 | www.ilr.cornell.edu/cahrs
 DO NICE GUYS -- AND GALS -- 
 REALLY FINISH LAST? 
 THE JOINT EFFECTS OF SEX 
 AND AGREEABLENESS ON 
 INCOME
 Key Findings
 •  The pay gap between agreeable and disagreeable 
 males is significantly larger than the gap between 
 agreeable and disagreeable females. That is, there is a 
 “benefit” of  being (moderately) disagreeable as a 
 male, but this “benefit” is minimal for females
 •  Employees are subject to gender stereotypes in the 
 workplace. Males are expected to exhibit masculine 
 qualities, including disagreeableness. Females are 
 expected to exhibit feminine qualities, including 
 agreeableness. When one gender defies such 
 stereotypes, the employee can be perceived as deviant
 •  Males who are agreeable are disadvantaged
 (vs. disagreeable males) for two reasons: first, 
 agreeableness is negatively correlated with income; 
 secondly, they defy the male stereotype of  being 
 assertive and disagreeable
 193 Ives Hall, Ithaca,  NY 14850
 607.255.9358
 www.ilr.cornell.edu/cahrs
 cahrs@cornell.edu
 Does it Pay More to Create Harmony or to Rock the Boat?
 Although developed nations celebrate the progress of  females in the workplace, sobering 
 studies show that gender inequality continues even today (Weinberger & Kuhn, 2010). 
 While it is common knowledge that women tend to earn less than their male counterparts, 
 the effect of  agreeableness on income is reported on less frequently. 
 Agreeableness is often defined as the level to which a person displays trust, 
 straightforwardness, altruism, compliance, modesty, and tender-mindedness (Costa & 
 McCrae, 1992). Research has repeatedly found that workers displaying higher levels of  
 agreeableness earn less than their colleagues displaying lower levels of  agreeableness (Ng et 
 al., 2005; Mueller & Plug, 2006; Nyhus & Pons, 2005; & Rode et. Al., 2008). In other words, 
 being less agreeable pays—literally. It is important to understand that low levels of  
 agreeableness, as well as high levels of  disagreeableness, do not imply hostility; they instead 
 refer to one’s tendency to be assertive upon disagreement. 
 This study examines the extent to which gender roles and agreeableness interact to 
 determine wage. A main focus of  this study was to see how expected gender roles influence 
 the level to which agreeableness affects wage. For example, because women are expected to 
 be high in agreeableness, will displaying disagreeableness in the workplace result in backlash 
 for not conforming to their gender stereotype (Rudman & Fairchild, 2004), or will the 
 positive wage effects of  being low in agreeableness lead to higher earnings? This article 
 covers four separate studies examining the dynamic between gender and agreeableness 
 within the workplace. 
 Topic
 page 2
 For  an in-depth discussion of  this topic:
 Study Questions
 •  Do agreeable workers earn less than disagreeable workers?
 •  Does the level of  agreeableness or disagreeableness a worker shows affect wage 
 differently based on the gender of  the worker?
 •  When the traditional gender roles of  agreeableness are met, (i.e. men are less agreeable 
 and women are more agreeable) do wages increase?  
 •  Is the difference in wages between agreeable and disagreeable workers wider for men or 
 for women?
 It is expected that  men◊, less agreeable workers*, and those who conform to gender stereotypes† ear n more; 
 therefore, men who are low in agreeableness (their expected gender norm) should earn the most.
 Gender  High Agreeableness  Low Agreeableness*
 Women  Conforms†  Does not Conform
 Men◊  Does not Conform  Conforms†
 193 Ives Hall, Ithaca,  NY 14850
 607.255.9358
 www.ilr.cornell.edu/cahrs
 cahrs@cornell.edu
 page 3
 Results
 •  Even after considering job responsibility and occupational status, agreeableness has a 
 much stronger negative effect on earnings for men than for women. Being agreeable is 
 associated with a lower income, but men who are agreeable incur an additional 
 disadvantage: they are perceived as deviants, since they are not conforming to their 
 assumed gender role of  being disagreeable. 
 •  The effect of  agreeableness on men’s income is more drastic than for women’s income. 
 Meaning, the wage differences between agreeable and disagreeable workers is larger for 
 men than for women. 
 •  Men who are less agreeable not only earn more, but increase their salaries at a faster rate. 
 Additionally, regardless of  gender, agreeable candidates are less likely to be 
 recommended for advancement
 •  Disagreeableness exacerbates the gender wage gap; although agreeable men earn more 
 than agreeable women, this gap almost doubles for disagreeable men and women. So, 
 the wage gap between men and women decrease as men display more agreeableness. 
 Agreeableness Affects Males 
 More Than Females 
 This research was conducted through a series of  four, smaller studies. The first three studies 
 examined the effects of  agreeableness on the wages of  men and women. In all three studies 
 disagreeable women earned more than agreeable women (Fig. 1 -3), but only in study 2 was 
 this significant. This suggests that the level of  agreeableness displayed by women has less of  
 an effect on income. 
 Conversely, men who were lower in agreeableness earned significantly more than men 
 higher in agreeableness in all three studies, even after job responsibility and occupational 
 status are taken into account. Overall agreeableness has a greater impact on the wages of  
 men than women. 
 Although, compared to their female counterparts, men receive a much larger benefit from 
 being disagreeable; they also face far more negative outcomes from being agreeable. The 
 research suggests the negative outcomes associated with agreeableness in men are a result of  
 agreeableness being viewed as counter-stereotypical trait in men, causing backlash.  
 Besides having an effect on wage, agreeableness was also associated with the rate of  career 
 advancement. In study 4, agreeable candidates were less likely to be recommended for 
 advancement (Fig. 4). Women were also less likely to be recommended for advancement 
 than men, but this connection was not as significant as the association between 
 agreeableness and advancement.
 One reason agreeableness has less of  an impact on women’s wages may be due to how the 
 agreeableness scores given to women are not translating into their actions. There is evidence 
 that if  women fear a possible backlash for acting counter to their gender stereotype, they 
 will change their behavior to be more similar to what is expected of  them (Rudman & 
 193 Ives Hall, Ithaca,  NY 14850
 607.255.9358
 www.ilr.cornell.edu/cahrs
 cahrs@cornell.edu
 page 4
 Fairchild, 2004; Moss-Rascusin & Rudman, 2010). In the workplace this would translate 
 into disagreeable women making more of  an effort to get along with others. By “toning 
 done” the actions that disagreeable men still display—such as being more demanding in 
 salary negotiations or imparting disapproval on others—these women may be eliminating 
 the actions which bring about the wage outcomes associated with disagreeableness. 
 This research helps employers re-examine the way they perceive their employees’ 
 performance levels based on agreeableness. Agreeableness is a positive trait, but it is not 
 being rewarded in the workplace. Agreeable individuals are more cooperative and helpful 
 (LePine & Van Dyne, 1998) and are better liked by others (Jensen-Campbell, Adams, Perry, 
 Workman, Furdella, & Egan, 2002). Although reexamining the way compensation is 
 allotted based on agreeableness will not fix the still-present gender disparity in wages, it will 
 help focus organizations on what traits they wish to encourage in their employees, regardless 
 of  gender. 
 Figure 1: Study 1 Results 
 IN
CO
M
E 
($
)
 LOW (-1 SD)  HIGH (+1 SD)
 AGREEABLENESS
 45000
 40000
 35000
 30000
 25000
  MEN   WOMEN
 $42,113
 $31,259
 $32,283
 $30,431
 Figure 2: Study 2 Results
 IN
CO
M
E 
($
)
 LOW (-1 SD)  HIGH (+1 SD)
 AGREEABLENESS
 50000
 45000
 25000
  MEN   WOMEN
 $47,514
 $38,246
 $28,381
 $26,505
 40000
 35000
 30000
 193 Ives Hall, Ithaca,  NY 14850
 607.255.9358
 www.ilr.cornell.edu/cahrs
 cahrs@cornell.edu
 page 5
 Data Source
 Study 1:
 o  Individuals enrolled in the National Longitudinal Surveys of  Youth (NLSY97), which 
 lasted from 1997 – 2008. Participants were between 12-16 years old when they 
 enrolled in 1997. Survey participants  were required to be working outside of  their 
 homes, not enrolled in college full-time, and be working a minimum of  1,000 hours 
 per year to participate at each time point when data was collected. 560 individuals 
 took part in the surveys.
 Figure 3: Study 3 Results 
 IN
CO
M
E 
($
)
 LOW (-1 SD)  HIGH (+1 SD)
 AGREEABLENESS
 95000
 80000
 65000
 50000
 35000
  MEN   WOMEN
 $90,241
 $70,774
 $42,093
 $38,851
 Figure 4: Study 4 Results
 AD
VA
NC
EM
EN
T 
RE
CO
M
M
EN
DA
TO
NS
 LOW (-1 SD)  HIGH (+1 SD)
 AGREEABLENESS
 0.2
 0.1
 0
 -0.1
 -0.2
  MEN   WOMEN
 0.19
 -0.15
 0.05
 0.00
 This study was conducted by: 
 Timothy A. Judge,
 Franklin D. Schurz Professor of  Management, 
 Mendoza College of  Business,
 University of  Notre Dame
 Beth A. Livingston,
 assistant professor of  Human Resource Studies,
 ILR School, Cornell University
 Charlice Hurst,
 assistant professor of  Organizational Behavior, 
 Richard Ivey School of  Business,
 University of  Western Ontario
 Researchers
 page 6
 Study 2:
 o  Individuals who worked full-time outside of  the home and were enrolled in the 
 National Survey or Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS) were 
 randomly selected to complete a phone interview and two mail surveys. 1,681 
 individuals took part from 1995 – 1996. Participants were all non-institutionalized, 
 English-speaking adults, age 25-75, living in the United States. 
 Study 3:
 o  Individuals who took place in the 1992 – 1993 interview as a part of  the Wisconsin 
 Longitudinal Study (WLS) who were employed full-time and earned a positive income 
 for the year. The sample included 1,691 individuals. Participants answered questions 
 on how much they valued pay and relationships.
 Study 4:
 o  460 undergraduates in a business management class at a Southeastern University 
 were asked to read assessments of  eight entry-level candidates for a job opening and 
 determine the candidates’ potential for growth in the position. The eight candidates 
 varied in the level of  agreeableness and were either all male or all female.
 Takeaways
 •  Low levels of  agreeableness at work are associated with better job-related outcomes. 
 Managers should keep this in mind when deciding what types of  behaviors their 
 compensation and promotion structures could unwittingly be encouraging in their 
 employees.
 •  Agreeableness affects the wages of  male workers more than female workers. This may be 
 due to agreeableness being counter-stereotypical to gender expectations for males. 
 193 Ives Hall, Ithaca,  NY 14850
 607.255.9358
 www.ilr.cornell.edu/cahrs
 cahrs@cornell.edu
 Jensen-Campbell, L. A., Adams, R., Perry, D. G., Workman, K. A., Furdella, J. Q., & Egan, 
 S. K. (2002). Agreeableness, extraversion, and peer relations in early adolescence: Winning 
 friends and deflecting aggression. Journal of  Research in Personality, 36,  224-251.
 LePine, J. A., & Van Dyne, L. (1998). Predicting voice behavior in work groups.  Journal of  
 Applied Psychology, 83, 853-868. 
 Moss-Racusin, C., & Rudman, L. (2010). Disruptions in women’s self-promotion: The 
 backlash avoidance model.  Psychology of  Women Quarterly, 34,  186-202. 
 Mueller, G., & Plug, E. (2006). Estimating the effect of  personality on male and female 
 earnings. Industrial & Labor Relations Review, 60,  3-22.
 Ng, T. W. H., Eby, L. T., Sorensen, K. L., & Feldman, D. C. (2005) Predictors of  objective 
 and subjective career success: A meta-analysis.  Personnel Psychology, 58, 367-408.
 Nyhus, E., & Pons, E. (2005). The effects of  personality on earnings. Journal of  Economic 
 Psychology, 26, 363-384.
 Rode, J., Arthaud-Day, M., Mooney, C., Near, J., & Baldwin, T. (2008). Ability and 
 personality predictors of  salary, perceived job success, and perceived career success in the 
 initial career stage.  International Journal of  Selection and Assessment, 16,  292-299.
 Rudman, L. A. & Fairchild, K. (2004). Reactions to counterstereotypic behavior: The role 
 of  backlash in cultural stereotype maintenance.  Journal of  Personality and Social Psychology, 87, 
 157-176. 
 Weinberger, C., & Kuhn, P. (2010). Changing levels or changing slopes? The narrowing of  
 the gender earnings gap, 1959-1999. I ndustrial & Labor Relations Review, 63, 384-406. 
 References
 page 7
 The Center for Advanced Human Resource Studies (CAHRS) is an international center serving 
 corporate human resources leaders and their companies by providing critical tools for building and 
 leading high- performing HR organizations. CAHRS’ mission is to bring together partners and the 
 ILR School’s world-renowned HR Studies faculty to investigate, translate and apply the latest HR 
 research into practice excellence


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Do Nice Guys -- And Gals -- Really Finish Last? The Joint Effects of Sex and Agreeableness on Income

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