Type A coronary-prone behavior pattern and social facilitation

A laboratory study was conducted to investigate the task performance of Type A coronary-prone individuals relative to Type B's in three types of social situations: alone, with a similarly performing coactor, or with a better-performing coactor. The results indicate that Type A's performance on a simple task was facilitated by the presence of either a similar or superior coactor, whereas the presence of coactors impaired performance on a complex task. Type B's showed weak and nonsignificant facilitation effects that occurred only in the presence of similar coactors. The results are discussed in terms of the Type A's concern about evaluation, achievement, and social comparison, and Sanders and Baron's distraction-conflict theory of social facilitation.