Friedman and Roseman (1978) Personality as a Stress Source Flashcards
What is the aim of the study?
- To investigate links between Type A behaviour patterns and heart disease.
What research design was used?
- Correlational Study
- Longitudinal study
Describe the sample for Friedman and Roseman’s (1978) study?
- 3000 (Californian) Males
- Aged 39-59
How much ppts were in the Friedman and Roseman (1978) study?
- 3000 males
What was the age range of the sample?
- 39-59 y/o
Describe the procedure of Friedman and Roseman’s study?
- The ptts were given questionnaires.
- They were classified as either Type A or Type B personalities based on their responses
- Half of the men were Type A and the other half was type B.
- The men were monitored for 8 1/2 years for the development of stress-related illness (paticularly CHD)
How long were the men monitored for?
- 8 1/2 years
Describe the results of Friedman and Roseman’s (1978) study?
- 70% of the (257 men) who developed CHD had Type A personalities.
…of the (257 men) who developed CHD had Type A personalities.
70%
70% of the (….men) who developed CHD had Type A personalities.
257
What is another key result of the study?
- Even when the figures were adjusted for smoking and lifestyle, it still emerged than Type A’s were twice as likely to develop CHD compared to Type B’s.
What were the conclusions of Friedman and Roseman’s (1978) study?
- The behaviour of Type A personalities makes them more prone to illness.
The behaviour of Type A personalities makes them more prone to illness. Why?
- More likely to have their fight or flight responses triggered by their enviroment
- Thus, have more stress hormones present
- Which can lead to stress-related illnesses.
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the study?
- High validity and control
- Androcentric sample
Name 1 strength of the study?
- The study had high validity.
- As it controlled for important variables (lifestyle/ smoking).
- Minimising the confounding effects of extraneous variables
