Relationships among age, sex, the type A behavior pattern, and cardiovascular reactivity

Most investigations of Type A behavior and cardiovascular responsivity have used age-homogeneous, male samples. In this study, heart rate (HR) and blood pressure responses were obtained from men and women, age 27 to 70, during mental arithmetic and a visual discrimination task called the Matching Familiar Figures test (MFF). Both tasks produced HR deceleration in Type A women and acceleration in Type B women, responses that decreased with age. Men's responses were not related to Type A behavior or age. Systolic pressure decreased in response to the MFF. This response became larger with age in Type Bs and smaller in Type As. Diastolic pressure also decreased during the MFF. Response amplitude increased with age in Type Bs but was unrelated to age in Type As. The results of this study indicate that the relationship between cardiovascular responding and Type A behavior is complex and may be different for men and women and for persons of different ages.