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  • In the field of gifted education much research has been conducted regarding giftedness and underachievement, with researchers focusing primarily on reversing underachievement while students are in school. Research that has been conducted with regard to female underachievement has focused on girls of school age. While researchers disagree on the cause of female underachievement, most studies are conducted with a focus on reversing school age male underachievement. Very little research has been conducted with regard to adult female underachievement, and no research has been found in the area of life experiences of gifted women of Mensa who have experienced underachievement. Outstanding career or talent success, or female eminence, has been studied to a great degree, however, and many common contributing factors have been identified. In the realm of adult female underachievement, which is defined as achievement far below potential in academics or career, it is unclear whether childhood and adulthood life experiences contribute to underachievement in gifted women, or whether underachievement in women is due to personal choices or other intrinsic or extrinsic factors. A qualitative interview study was conducted with 12 gifted female members of Mensa who have experienced adult underachievement, whereby the researcher asked questions regarding the participants' personal experiences and whether those experiences had an effect on their underachievement. Giftedness was determined by membership in Mensa. Underachievement was determined by descriptors found in the literature regarding adult underachievement and was provided to the participants before the interview. The open-ended interview format allowed the researcher to explore experiences as the participants described them, while they also investigated in a self-evaluative manner whether those experiences may have contributed to underachievement. The women in the study were age 21 and over, were members of Mensa, and had experienced underachievement in adulthood. Results showed that all participants suffered trauma in childhood or early adulthood and attributed their underachievement to that early trauma. Both behavioral and emotional manifestations of underachievement resulted which included both academic and career underachievement, as well as loneliness, self-doubt, and depression. Further research should include larger samples, additional interviews, and a mixed method approach to quantify results. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Última actualización de la base de datos: 4/10/26, 6:08 (CEST)

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