In the past I have taken tests similar to these and gotten completely different results. I wanted to know exactly why this was and learned that your stress levels can change your personality type over the course of a long period of time. Large amounts of stress can change your habits in a moment, but your personality is still there just under that current moment’s behaviors. If someone is subjected to prolonged high stress levels it can shift them completely from B to A.
I am currently under a decent amount of stress and, although I normally am represented as type B on these tests, I scored a 74/100 “Type A” on the “Are You Type A?” test. This past year has been one of the more stressful years of my life, which my score of 370 on the Life Stress questionnaire represents pretty well. A lot of things have contributed to this but a large factor that applies more to our learning material is career change. I went from working as a brand representative, to helping a struggling small business that eventually went under, to now committing to pilot school which will come with a lot of debt. I believe that due to these factors I have started to drift towards type A. As for what I can do to reverse this or turn it into an advantage, I started to structure my days with an allowed time for hobbies and relaxation. It has been so easy over the past year to be restless and constantly on the move because there’s so much to get done. I am working on slowing myself down and letting myself enjoy little things more. Another beneficial addition, or re-addition I guess, is getting back into the gym. I have always felt my best when I make time for my health. I believe these little personal changes are a lot better than anything my last company was able to provide but it’s important to note that they helped push me in that direction. They had a great program set up for therapy and shared discussion spaces that made me realize some changes I could make before taking those steps.
Stress management can be extremely hard to manage but with the right tools and support system I believe they can be pretty easy to overcome. Sure I’m super stressed right now but I have goals I am working towards with tangible, completable milestones ahead.
Sources:
Type A/B behaviour pattern. ILO Encyclopedia of Occupational Health and Safety. https://www.iloencyclopaedia.org/part-v-77965/psychosocial-and-organizational-factors/individual-factors/item/51-type-a-b-behaviour-pattern
McLeod, S. (2024). Type A personality traits (vs. Type B). Simply Psychology. https://www.simplypsychology.org/personality-a.html