Type A Behavior Pattern Today: Relevance of the JAS-S Factor to Predict Heart Rate Reactivity

Abstract

The authors used 89 undergraduate students' scores in the S-factor of the Jenkins Activity Survey, a measure of speed and impatience, to classify 45 participants as high scorers and 44 as low scorers. They then measured the students' tonic and phasic heart rates during an examination, a genuinely stressful situation. The experiment consisted of three phases: adaptation, task, and recovery. The findings confirmed the authors' hypothesis that the high-S scorers would show higher cardiac reactivity values than the low-S scorers. The authors also observed that the high-S scorers took more time than the low-S scorers to recover their initial heart rate values after being exposed to the stress situation. This finding led the authors to suggest that each group may have different response patterns. They call for further research on individuals with “fast activation-fast recovery” and “fast activation-slow recovery” profiles.

Key Words:

• cardiac reactivity
• fast activation-slow recovery profile
• Jenkins Activity Scale S-factor

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Alicia Breva Asensio

Dr Palmero is a professor of basic psychology at the University Jaume I of Castellón, Spain; Dr Díez is a cardiologist at the General Hospital of Castellón; and Dr Breva Asensio is an associate professor of basic psychology at the University of Sevilla.