Type A Behavior Scale Test

Understand your stress style and behavior under pressure in about 16 minutes. Get a clear snapshot of drive, impatience, and hostility risk to guide support, workload, and burnout prevention.

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Questions: 8616 minutes

08:30

October 2, 2025

October 2, 2025
Material has been updated

October 2, 2025
Material has been published

18,328 views

1,940 completions

1,603 likes

Verified by Daniel Hall

Psychologist with 25 years of experience

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

example score

29/56

Work Involvement (WI)

This scale measures how interested, energized, and involved a person feels in their work activities.

Low

Moderate

14 – 27: Low | 28 – 56: Moderate

A score of 29 falls in the Moderate range, suggesting a generally engaged and involved work style without consistently high intensity.

example score

10/24

Competitiveness (C)

Competitiveness measures the drive to compete and the desire to be first in goal-oriented situations.

Low

Moderate

6 – 11: Low | 12 – 24: Moderate

A score of 10 falls in the Low range, suggesting a relatively modest focus on competing or needing to be first.

example score

14/28

Emotional Suppression (ES)

Measures the degree to which a person restrains and controls emotional reactions, especially under pressure.

Low restraint

Moderate restraint

High restraint

7 – 13: Low restraint | 14 – 20: Moderate restraint | 21 – 28: High restraint

A score of 14 falls in the Moderate restraint range, suggesting a generally controlled style of emotional expression with some flexibility depending on the situation.

example score

13/32

Behavioral Specificity (BS)

This scale measures how strongly a person shows structured, control-oriented behavior patterns typically associated with Type A style.

Low Type A specificity

High Type A specificity

8 – 15: Low Type A specificity | 16 – 32: High Type A specificity

A score of 13 falls in the Low Type A specificity range, suggesting less pronounced control-and-organization driven Type A behavior patterns in everyday behavior.

example score

16/20

Time Urgency (TU)

Measures the subjective sense of time pressure and rushing due to perceived insufficient time for tasks.

Low time pressure

Moderate time pressure

High time pressure

5 – 9: Low time pressure | 10 – 14: Moderate time pressure | 15 – 20: High time pressure

A score of 16 falls in the High time pressure range, suggesting a frequent feeling of rushing and limited time that may be associated with higher day-to-day stress from workload intensity.

example score

40/72

Hostility (H)

Hostility measures the tendency toward irritability, conflict-proneness, and negative attitudes toward others under stress or frustration.

Low

Moderate/High

18 – 35: Low | 36 – 72: Moderate/High

A score of 40 falls in the Moderate/High range, suggesting a more noticeable tendency toward irritability or conflict in challenging situations compared with lower scores.

example score

8/16

Vigor (V)

Measures everyday activity, vitality, and readiness to take initiative and act under demands.

Lower energy

Moderate energy

Higher energy

4 – 7: Lower energy | 8: Moderate energy | 9 – 16: Higher energy

A score of 8 indicates moderate energy, suggesting a generally adequate level of activity and initiative without pronounced high-drive intensity.

example score

34/40

Impatience (I)

Measures the tendency to rush, struggle with waiting, and seek quick results under pressure.

Low impatience

High impatience

10 – 19: Low impatience | 20 – 40: High impatience

A score of 34 falls in the High impatience range, suggesting a strong preference for fast progress and greater difficulty tolerating delays.

example score

40/56

Ambitiousness (A)

Measures the strength of achievement drive, desire to excel, and motivation to pursue high goals and recognition.

Lower ambition

Moderate ambition

Higher ambition

14 – 27: Lower ambition | 28 – 40: Moderate ambition | 41 – 56: Higher ambition

A score of 40 falls in the Moderate ambition range, suggesting a solid goal focus and interest in advancement without a consistently strong push to outcompete others.

example score

170/250

Behavior Pattern Type (BPT)

Assesses the overall behavioral style on the Type A–Type B spectrum, reflecting typical pace, tension, and goal-driven intensity under pressure.

Type B (calmer)

Type AB (mixed)

Type A (high intensity)

86 – 159: Type B (calmer) | 160 – 180: Type AB (mixed) | 181 – 250: Type A (high intensity)

A score of 170 falls in the Type AB (mixed) range, suggesting an active, hardworking style with a generally balanced work–rest pattern and moderate stress reactivity.

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DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

Overloaded high achievers

41%OF USERS

Ambitious professionals take it to check if constant urgency, perfectionism, and work intensity are pushing them toward chronic stress and burnout.

HR and team leads

34%OF USERS

Managers and HR specialists use it to spot employees prone to overwork, impatience, and conflict under pressure and plan support or workload changes.

Therapy and coaching clients

25%OF USERS

People in counseling or coaching take it to understand their tension, time urgency, and hostility triggers and build healthier coping strategies.

BASED ON AGGREGATED, ANONYMIZED DATA FROM TENS OF THOUSANDS OF FREUDLY USERS.

Benchmarking

See How You Compare

Once you complete the test, your results are compared with real-world data from people in your country.
Below is a preview of how scores are typically distributed across each scale.

Engagement at Work (EaW)

Average

38.5

Normal range

31.5 — 45.5

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Competitiveness (C)

Average

13.2

Normal range

10.3 — 16.1

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Controlling Emotions (CE)

Average

Normal range

10.3 — 15.8

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Specificity of Behavior (SoB)

Average

23.8

Normal range

20.4 — 27.3

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Lack of Time (LoT)

Average

14.1

Normal range

11.4 — 16.7

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Hostility (H)

Average

49.3

Normal range

42.5 — 56

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Energetic (E)

Average

11.3

Normal range

9.2 — 13.3

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Impatience (I)

Average

24.7

Normal range

20.3 — 29.2

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Ambition (A)

Average

43.7

Normal range

36.1 — 51.3

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Type of behavioral activity (Toba)

Average

171.1

Normal range

147.1 — 195

min.

max.

250

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

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SAMPLE QUESTIONS

Example Questions From the Test

- No, that is not true
- Probably true
- True
- Completely true
- No, that is not true
- Probably true
- True
- Completely true
- No, that is not true
- Probably true
- True
- Completely true

These are 3 of the 86 real questions — the rest appear in the test. No sign-up needed to start.

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WHAT THE TEST MEASURES

About This Assessment

Type A Behavior Scale Test - Symptoms and Signs

type a behavior

This measure is used to evaluate a time-urgent, high-striving behavioral style and related tension under everyday demands. The Type A Behavior Scale is an 86 items self-report questionnaire typically completed in about 16 minutes.

Items assess tendencies such as urgency and impatience, high work involvement, and irritability or hostility when goals are blocked, supporting a structured estimate of Type A-like behavior patterns. The Type A Behavior Scale is commonly used in clinical and research contexts to characterize stress-related behavioral tendencies and to inform case formulation or intervention planning, with attention to interpretation in the broader clinical picture. Authors: M. Friedman; R. H. Rosenman.

Author: M. Friedman, R. H. Rosenman

Literature: Friedman, M., & Rosenman, R. H. Type A behavior and your heart. Knopf. 1974.; Quick, J. C., & Tetrick, L. E. (Eds.). Handbook of occupational health psychology. American Psychological Association. 2003.