Is Your Type B Personality Secretly Awesome?

2025-08-16 06:00:16.923

Helene Rutledge, a healthcare executive, has friends representing Type A, hybrid, and Type B personalities. Her Type B friend is spontaneous, sometimes unreliable, but incredibly generous. This highlights the current trend of celebrating Type B personalities on platforms like TikTok. However, experts like Colin DeYoung, director of the DeYoung Personality Lab, explain that personality isn't about types but rather a spectrum of traits. The widely known Type A/B dichotomy, originating in the 1950s, linked personality to heart attack risk, but these findings haven't held up scientifically. Most personality researchers now use the Big Five model (openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism) to describe personality traits. The enduring appeal of Type A/B stems from its simplicity and cultural relevance. In a high-pressure work environment, the Type B personality represents a reaction against hustle culture, offering a more relaxed alternative. While personality typologies can be helpful for self-understanding, they can also be misused by companies in hiring practices and lead to self-criticism. The article concludes that while personality traits are not fixed, understanding the spectrum of traits and their associated strengths can help individuals find a path that fits who they are.