Citation

Treiber FA, Mabe PA, Riley W, Carr T, Levy M, Thompson W, Strong WB. J. Pers. Assess. 1989; 53(4): 770-782.

Affiliation

Department of Pediatrics, Georgia Institute for the Prevention of Human Disease and Accidents, Medical College of Georgia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1989, Society for Personality Assessment, Publisher Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1207/s15327752jpa5304_13

PMID

2607405

Abstract

Thirty-two teachers rated Type A behavior, using Matthews Youth Test for Health, (MYTH) and negative characteristics of hyperactivity, negative peer relations, social withdrawal, and depression in 105 children, between the ages of 6 and 11, from lower to middle class Black and White families. Children's age, gender, race, and socioeconomic status (SES) and teachers' gender, grade taught, and years of teaching experience were not related to teachers' MYTH ratings. However, White teachers rated children higher on Type A behavior than Black teachers. Controlling for teacher race effects, MYTH total scores, rather than reflecting a global negative view of the child, showed a strong overlap with hyperactivity and were differentiated from social withdrawal and depression. The MYTH Impatience/Aggression factor was highly related to hyperactivity and negative peer interactions; the Competitiveness factor was associated with a lack of social withdrawal. The conclusions verify the multidimensional nature of children's Type A behavior pattern and the importance of rater demographic characteristics in the assessment of children's behavior.

Language: en