Type A, B and C personalities: attitude affects health

These personality types refer to how people respond to everyday situations, as well as extreme situations, resulting in stress. However, these type A, B and C personality patterns are used to assign individuals with different ways of expressing thoughts and behaviors.

• Related article: "The main theories of personality"

Personality and expression of stress

Friedman and Rosenman, cardiologists, after investigating the relationship of different types of personalities and cardiovascular diseases, revealed a direct correlation in coping with stress, personality type and illness.

They carried out different studies. In a first study, they were able to differentiate the types of personalities of the patients, highlighting those who waited quiet and those who could not sit for long and manifested restless movements through the arms, hands and legs or feet. These results were not initially accepted by the medical community; the change in this interpretation occurred after the results obtained in his formal investigation as I explain below.

After this study, Friedman and Rosemann (1976) named a first behavior as Type A, and indicated they were at increased risk of heart disease and corresponding high blood pressure compared to Type B,

Friedman and Rosenman conducted a longitudinal study to demonstrate the correlation between personality type and incidence in heart disease. It was published in the Western Collaborative Group Study, in which 3,154 healthy men between the ages of 39 and 59 were studied for eight and a half years.

They completed a quiz with questions developed by Friedman & Rosenman: such as:

• Do you feel guilty if you use your free time to relax?
• Do you need to win in enjoying games and sports?
• Do you move, walk and eat fast?
• Do you often try to do more than one thing at a time?

After obtaining the answers, they concluded and differentiated the types of behaviors exposed type A and B.

Both personality patterns were prone to developing coronary heart disease. But after differentiating certain habits such as smoking and certain life styles, it was possible to appreciate how Type A people personality traits had practically the same portability of developing heart disease as people of the Type B.

After these data, and after eight years, the results obtained from the members in the study were that 257 of them had developed coronary disease. The final result was decisive, since 70% of the men who had developed coronary heart disease were type A personalities.

What are type A, B and C personalities like?

After all this we can define the different types of personalities and traits that differentiate not only behavior but also the impact of anxiety on the body.

Type A

Type A individuals they tend to be very self-demanding, competitive and self-critical. They are great fighters, they are not patient, they try very hard to achieve their goals, and once achieved they do not give them great satisfaction.

They tend to be ambitious, showing great involvement especially at the work level. They tend to be impatient, which in the long term makes them unproductive, after the latter they try even more and this converts this pattern of behavior in a vicious circle, showing great demand and even being able to manifest itself in aggressiveness.

On the other hand, a longitudinal study by Ragland and Brand (1988) also found that, according to indicated by patients with Friedman Type A, they were more likely to have a disease coronary.

Type B

People with a Type B behavior pattern tend to be more emotional, patient and more reflective, showing lower levels of anxiety, greater creative skills and imagination. They are not usually competitive.

Type C

On the other hand, the behavior patterns of Type C do not usually express emotions easily, omitting feelings, especially negative ones, such as anger. They can be extremely kind, to avoid conflicts, prevailing compliance with social rules and patience.

The incidence of coronary heart disease

The main problem with type A and type B is the diagnosis of coronary heart disease. Some research (e.g. Johnston, 1993) have focused on hostility, arguing that the type of behavior is an important factor leading to coronary heart disease.

Type C personality is characterized by people who tend to ignore their feelings and repress their emotions rather than face and seek solutions. Manifesting greater susceptibility or behaviors or personalities associated with certain diseases such as asthma, colds or cancer.

Dr. Gianaros, associate professor of the Clinical and Biological and Health Psychology programs at the Department of Psychology at the University of Pittsburgh, investigates the mind-body connection and on how psychological and social factors impact on a physical level. In 2017 in the journal Biológica Psiquiatría, published a study about it.

In his study he used a combination of psychophysiological methods combined with brain imaging to determine Neural correlations to cardiovascular stress reactions stressful situations, depression, anger, rage, etc.

In this study, Dr. Gianaros aimed to analyze the neural responses caused by psychological stress and emotional regulation, and establish the possible relationship of the levels of preclinical atherosclerosis, heart attacks and accidents cerebrovasculare are the effect of a progressive deterioration to the blood vessels through the accumulation of plaque in the arteries or from atherosclerosis, which over time reduces blood flow and can cause serious problems such as an accident cerebrovascular disease and death.

After these studies and other evidence, it is seen how permanent negative emotions and the risk of atherosclerosis and diseases cardiovascular diseases are positively correlated, possibly by increasing levels of inflammatory chemicals that originate in the organisms. Nowadays, research at the University of Pittsburgh continues, which studies the relationship of the specific neural circuits that underlie said development, as well as the regulation of negative emotions related to pathologies such as atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases.

Dr. Gianaros believes that these discoveries show that the same areas of the brain used to regulate emotions They also regulate inflammatory responses, producing greater brain activity and in the course of regulating the emotions.

The vital attitude counts a lot

Optimism, laughter, mindfulness and relaxation techniques and meditation, rich social connections and coping strategies can help reduce the risk of heart disease as well as other pathologies.

Daily practices of laughter, mindfulness meditation, equanimity, and maintaining strong social connections can be part of a brain-based prevention strategy and the body that will improve long-term psychological and physical well-being.

It would be interesting to keep these studies not only in the behavioral pattern of type A, but also in B and C.

And he remembers, You are the creator of your mind!