This association aligns with cultural descriptors of kindness, often referred to as 'sweet' or 'honey'.

The findings can be explained through conceptual metaphor theory, which suggests that people use concrete experiences like taste to understand abstract concepts such as niceness.

This theory illustrates how metaphors help map abstract concepts onto tangible experiences, facilitating comprehension of traits like agreeableness.

A new study, led by Brian P. Meier, was published in the Journal of Research in Personality on November 4, 2024.

This research explores the association between sweet taste preferences and the personality trait of agreeableness across different cultures.

The study involved 1,650 participants from four countries: 373 from China, 474 from Germany, 401 from Mexico, and 402 from the United States.

Participants completed a 10-item trait agreeableness scale alongside a sweet taste preference scale, rating various sweets on a scale of 1 to 6.

Results indicated a significant positive correlation between a preference for sweet foods and agreeableness across all cultural samples.