Comparison of the prevalence of type A behavior in boys and girls from two contrasting socioeconomic status groups.

Abstract

The prevalence of Type A behavior in children from lower-class rural and upper-class urban backgrounds was compared using the Hunter-Wolf A-B Self-Rating Scale (H-W A-B). Analyses of variance were performed for two levels of socioeconomic status (SES), two levels of race (black and white), two levels of gender, and two levels of age (9-11 and 13-14). A significant difference for SES was found in the predicted direction with a greater prevalence of Type A being found among upper-urban children (p less than .001). There was also a significant effect for race (p less than .0001). Although there was a significant effect for gender with boys scoring higher (p less than .001), there was no difference between boys and girls within either SES group, and both boys and girls in the upper-urban group were more Type A than boys and girls in the lower-rural group (p less than .001). The possibility that the lack of sex differences within groups may reflect changing lifestyles for young women is discussed as a topic worthy of further epidemiological investigation.