Type A behavior in married couples in a family practice population.

Type A behavior is characterized by status insecurity, hyperaggressiveness, free-floating hostility, time urgency, and self-destructive tendencies. In this cross-sectional study, a sample of 72 married couples from a family practice residency patient population completed self-administered questionnaires assessing the relationship between behavior type and perceived stress, social support, health perceptions, psychosomatic symptoms, health habits, marital discord, and family function. Type A men slept less, had more headaches, and reported more job stress than type B men. Type A women tended to report more frequent abdominal pains and backaches and perceived more job stress than type B women. The behavior types of marital partners did not affect various measures of family function. Assessments of family function by individual spouses were remarkably similar.