One of the most interesting findings in class for me this week was the idea that the music we listen to can signal to other people more about our personality than what we read, what movies we watch, or what clothes we wear. It appears that music can be used to accurately assess many aspects of someone's personality--even someone you have just met (or haven't met at all in the case of the Rentfrow & Gosling study). For example, listening to someone's top ten list helped participants accurately assess someone's openness to experience, emotional stability, and agreeableness. Why is music such a helpful cue to someone's personality? Rentfrow & Gosling suggest that perhaps we selectively choose music that we think protrays the personality we have. Another suggestion they give is that our music selection may have more to do with managaing our mood and arousal levels. Whatever the reason, the next time you want to learn more about someone, ask them for their music top-ten!