Job Complexity, “Type A” Behavior, and Cardiovascular Disorder: A Prospective Study

Abstract

Interview-based measures of “type A” behavior and psychological and task-person indexes of job complexity were obtained from 251 police and fire department employees with sound cardiovascular health. Follow-up data on cardiovascular disorder were collected seven years later from participants who had remained with their organizations. The type A behavior pattern predicted cardiovascular disorder over time, and the relationships between the two complexity indexes and cardiovascular morbidity were positive among individuals with high type A behavior ratings but negative among those with low ratings. We discuss the implications of these findings for worker health and job design.