RATINGS OF PERCEIVED EXERTION BY A GROUP OF WOMEN - DOES TYPE-A BEHAVIOR ACT AS A MODIFIER

It has previously been suggested that individuals displaying the Type A behavior pattern underestimate their perceived exertion during physi cal exercise. Most research pertaining to these results has been perfo rmed with male participants. In the present study, 70 women (mean age 26.8 yr.) varying in scores on the Bortner scale participated in a sta ndardized cycle ergometer test performed individually in a laboratory setting. Analysis showed small but nonsignificant differences in ratin gs by participants. This held over the whole range from light to heavy exercise intensity. Less than 1% of the explained variance in ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) could be traced back to the scores for be havior of the individuals. Thus, contrary to some prior reports of RPE suppression associated with the Type A behavior pattern, the results present instead a null finding. Possible causes for the equivocal resu lts are the environment (laboratory vs field), the question whether a laboratory test performed individually is perceived as challenging eno ugh to trigger the competitive urge, type of exercise, the individual' s sex, the measure used for assessing Type A behavior pattern, and whe ther gender-based schematic/aschematic processing is involved.