A measurement model for the Type A Self-Rating Inventory

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Behavioral Science
• Personality Psychology

Background:

• The Type A behavior pattern is linked to various health outcomes.
• Existing measures of Type A behavior have limitations.
• The Type A Self-Rating Inventory (TASRI) shows strong face validity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a formal measurement model for the TASRI.
• To examine the factor structure of the TASRI.
• To investigate gender differences in TASRI factors.

Main Methods:

• Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze data from 831 undergraduate psychology students (352 male, 479 female).
• A subset of 13 TASRI items was analyzed to identify a robust two-factor model.
• Independent samples t-tests were used to compare gender differences on the identified factors.

Main Results:

• An oblique two-factor (Hard-Driving, Extroverted) model explained over 90% of the common variance for the selected TASRI items.
• Men scored higher on the Hard-Driving factor and lower on the Extroverted factor compared to women, though differences were small.
• The Hard-Driving and Extroverted factors correlated with positive sociability and negative power, respectively, within the Big Five framework.

Conclusions:

• The refined TASRI provides a valid and reliable measure of Type A behavior, particularly the Hard-Driving and Extroverted dimensions.
• The study confirms subtle gender differences in Type A behavior facets, with implications for understanding personality and behavior.
• The TASRI factors can be meaningfully interpreted within broader personality models like the Big Five.