Psychological correlates of the type A behaviour pattern in coronary angiography patients

Abstract

The convergent validity of two popular self-report Type A questionnaires (the Jenkins Activity Survey and Framingham Scale), and their association with personality traits related to Type A, affective states and traits, and history of nervous illness, were assessed in a sample of 92 coronary angiography patients. The correlation between the two Type A measures, although significant, was modest. Both Type A measures had strong associations with standard personality traits (neuroticism and trait tension). The Framingham Scale was strongly correlated with distressing psychological states (tension, anxiety and depression) while the JAS showed a lesser association with these measures. The implications of these findings in terms of the convergent validity of the two Type A measures, and the independence of the Type A concept from other personality and emotional variables, are discussed.