title: Type A behavior in children: psychometric properties of the Matthews Youth Test for Health.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the Matthews Youth Test for Health (MYTH) as a measure of components of Type A behavior in school-age children. The sample consisted of 216 middle-class, white, 6 to 11 year old, same-sex twin children. Pairs were randomly split into two subgroups for cross-validation. The MYTH was completed by 88% of the children's teachers. The Perceived Competence Scale was completed by 118 of the 124 children 8 to 11 years old; a parallel form of this instrument was completed by teachers of 108 of these children. The 17 items of the MYTH instrument were factor analyzed. Two factors, Impatience-Aggression and Competitive Achievement-Striving, were derived and cross-validated. These MYTH factors were internally consistent and replicated previous studies of school-age children. The construct validity of the MYTH subscales was partially supported by evidence of relationships between these components of Type A behavior and teacher-ratings of the child's competence in specific domains. Children's ratings of their competence and perceptions of global self-worth were not related to total MYTH scores or subscale scores.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing Systems and Technology, School of Nursing and Epidemiology, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston.
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Meininger
authors.forename: E E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Stashinko
authors.forename: L L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Hayman
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011594:Psychometrics; D012307:Risk Factors; D014430:Twins, Monozygotic; D014434:Type A Personality