Jj. Walsh et al., TYPE-A, NEUROTICISM, AND PHYSIOLOGICAL FUNCTIONING (ACTUAL AND REPORTED), Personality and individual differences, 16(6), 1994, pp. 959-965
Measures of actual and reported physiological functioning were obtaine
d from 39 white-collar workers under rest and bogus ultrasound conditi
ons, with the latter condition being designed to focus their attention
on internal physiological functioning. The actual physiological measu
res consisted of changes in heart rate, respiratory rate, skin resista
nce, and peripheral temperature, and there were corresponding self-rep
ort measures, as well as an assessment of reported stress. There were
only modest relationships between actual and reported changes in physi
ological functioning, and there were very few effects of Type A and ne
uroticism on actual physiological changes. The attentional manipulatio
n had more effect on Type As than on Type Bs for changes in reported h
eart rate, respiratory rate, sweat, and stress; it also had more effec
t on those low in neuroticism than those high in neuroticism for chang
es in reported sweat and stress, and there were similar (but non-signi
ficant) effects in the reported heart rate and respiratory rate data.
Theoretical accounts of these findings for Type A behaviour pattern an
d neuroticism are discussed.