Type a Behavior and Self Reports of Cardiovascular Arousal in Adolescents

Abstract

The association of adolescent Type A behavior with reports of cardiovascular arousal and sleep disturbances was examined. Previous research on the Framingham cohort indicates a cross-sectional relationship between symptoms of arousal and Type A behavior in both sexes, and a prospective relationship bet ween arousal and coronary heart disease incidence in women. Certain sleep patterns have been related to behavior pattern status in a college-aged population. In the current study, Type A behavior was assessed by the Adolescent Structured Interview (ASI), which yields three factor scores: interview behaviors, impatience, and harddriving. Endorsement of symptoms of cardiovascular arousal and sleep disturbances was compared for subjects above and below the median on each of the factor scores. The results showed that the impatience score is strongly related to reports of cardiovastular arousal, the harddriving factor yields a weaker relationship, and the interview behaviors factor was unrelated to reports of arousal. No relationship of Tvpe A behavior and sleep disturbances was found. These data support the usefulness of the component scoring of the ASI, and are encouraging of future research on the cardiovascular processes of the young.

Index Terms:

• adolescence
• arousal
• coronary disease