Well-being and the HEXACO model of personality

•Relations of HEXACO to well-being were investigated in three studies.•HEXACO outpredicted the BIS–BAS in relation to subjective well-being.•HEXACO outpredicted the Big Five in relation to psychological well-being.•Honesty–Humility were associated to higher levels of psychological well-being.

Past research has shown predictive advantages of the HEXACO model of personality over the Big Five/Five Factor, but less is known about the links between HEXACO factors and well-being. The relations of HEXACO dimensions with well-being were investigated, in three studies. The HEXACO did not have an advantage over the Big Five in predicting subjective well-being (SWB). However, it showed moderate advantages over the BIS–BAS in predicting SWB, and over the Big Five in predicting psychological well-being. From the HEXACO, Extraversion was the single strongest correlate of well-being. While Honesty–Humility was unrelated to SWB, it was related to higher levels of psychological well-being, with the Honesty sub-factor driving this relationship. Results showed the relationship of the HEXACO with well-being constructs and demonstrated its advantages over the Big Five and the BIS–BAS models. It has been suggested that despite being ‘‘good” for others, Honesty–Humility may not be ‘‘good” for one’s own subjective well-being.