The mediating role of music preference in the relationship between personality and pro-sociability

The present study aimed to observe the relationships between music preference, pro-sociability, and personality, considering the mediating role of music preference. A total of 236 Brazilians participated in the study (59.7% female, Mage = 20.11, SD = 4.74). The results showed that the music preference factors (Energetic-Rhythmic, Reflexive-Complex, Popular Music, and Conventional Music) correlated positively with pro-sociability, especially the preference for popular music, which encompasses some of the most heard genres in the Brazilian context (r = .42, p < .01). Regarding personality, the relationships between openness and reflexive-complex music (r = .28, p < .01), and between extroversion (r = .22, p < .01) and agreeableness (r = .13, p < .05) and popular music stand out. Finally, a statistically significant explanatory model (goodness-of-fit index = 0.99, comparative fit index = 0.99, root-mean-square error of approximation = 0.01, 90% CI = [0.00, 0.01], root-mean-square of residual = 0.01) indicated that the preference for popular music mediated indirect effects of extroversion (λ = 0.06, 95% CI = [0.02, 0.11], p < .01) and agreeableness (λ = 0.05, 95% CI = [0.01, 0.11], p < .05) in pro-sociability.