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We were thrilled to see an article focusing on giftedness, written by such thoughtful and well-respected researchers as Subotnik, Olszewski-Kubilius, and Worrell (see record 2012-24309-002). The expansive scope of their synthesis is so impressive that it could serve as a crash course introduction to gifted education. In our commentary, we focus specifically on the perspective of education service delivery. From this perspective, we review their guiding principles, chief goal, and provide some follow-up questions for further clarification as well as an implementation option also based on talent development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Peer status is an important indicator and predictor of adjustment. While gifted children tend to enjoy favorable peer status, their social functioning during adolescence is less clear. The current study seeks to enhance this understanding by examining both preference- and reputation-based peer status of gifted adolescents. Peer nominations were used to assess the peer status, aggression, victimization, and prosocial leadership of 327 public school seventh graders (44% male; 42% White). School records provided giftedness information, course grade, and standardized test scores, and substance use was self-reported. Gifted students were viewed as less aggressive and more prosocial and had higher academic achievement than nonidentified students. Giftedness moderated the peer status–adjustment relationship. Rejection related to higher victimization and test scores, but these associations were most exaggerated for gifted students. Popularity positively related to aggression and substance use; however, the associations were greatly attenuated for gifted students. Findings underscore the heterogeneity of gifted adolescents’ social experiences. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

Reports an error in "Gifted students’ perceptions of an accelerated summer program and social support" by Seon-Young Lee, Paula Olszewski-Kubilius, Matthew C. Makel and Martha Putallaz ( Gifted Child Quarterly, 2015[Oct], Vol 59[4], 265-282). The original article should have included the following acknowledgment: The authors would like to acknowledge the contributions of Corinne Alfeld and Becky Prince Kennedy to this study, particularly for their assistance with developing the survey and data collection. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 2015-43792-005). Using survey responses from students who participated in the summer programs at two university-based gifted education institutions, this study examined changes in gifted students’ perceptions of their learning environments, accelerated summer programs and regular schools, and social support in lives after participation in the summer programs. Our sample of gifted students was generally favorable about their classroom experiences and interactions with their teachers both in the gifted programs and regular school classes. Some noticeable differences were greater acceptance and support for giftedness, a stronger connection to peers, and greater ease in peer relationships reported during the programs, and enhanced maturity and orientation toward future after the programs. While all students relied on family and peers as sources of social support before, during and after the summer programs, older students also endorsed being able to rely more on themselves. Perceptions of greater social support seemed to be related to more positive assessment of students’ summer and school classes, although causality can go in either direction. Overall, this study suggests that gifted students’ summer program experiences may be instrumental in receiving affirmation about their giftedness from peers, enhancing independence and maturity for academic life, and building stronger belief in themselves. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

[Correction Notice: An Erratum for this article was reported in Vol 60(1) of Gifted Child Quarterly (see record 2016-01130-006). The original article should have included the following acknowledgment: The authors would like to acknowledge the contributions of Corinne Alfeld and Becky Prince Kennedy to this study, particularly for their assistance with developing the survey and data collection.] Using survey responses from students who participated in the summer programs at two university-based gifted education institutions, this study examined changes in gifted students’ perceptions of their learning environments, accelerated summer programs and regular schools, and social support in lives after participation in the summer programs. Our sample of gifted students was generally favorable about their classroom experiences and interactions with their teachers both in the gifted programs and regular school classes. Some noticeable differences were greater acceptance and support for giftedness, a stronger connection to peers, and greater ease in peer relationships reported during the programs, and enhanced maturity and orientation toward future after the programs. While all students relied on family and peers as sources of social support before, during and after the summer programs, older students also endorsed being able to rely more on themselves. Perceptions of greater social support seemed to be related to more positive assessment of students’ summer and school classes, although causality can go in either direction. Overall, this study suggests that gifted students’ summer program experiences may be instrumental in receiving affirmation about their giftedness from peers, enhancing independence and maturity for academic life, and building stronger belief in themselves. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

The present study expanded our current understanding of leadership among academically gifted seventh-grade students by examining peer-identified leaders of naturally occurring social groups in a mixed ability setting. Three consecutive cohorts of seventh-grade students ( N = 474; 57% female; 43% European American) attending a public magnet secondary school participated. Results indicated that gifted students were more apt to be identified as leaders than nongifted youth and both conventional and unconventional styles of leadership related similarly to higher social standing and influence in the peer network. Nongifted leaders displayed a mixed profile of prosocial and more risky deviant behavior, whereas gifted leaders displayed a primarily prosocial leadership style. However, gifted leaders perceived themselves to be more influential and intimidating than other students and also endorsed sensation seeking tendencies more than other students. Findings underscore the heterogeneity of leadership during young adolescence and the distinct profile of gifted leaders compared with other leaders and gifted peers. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

Growing attention is being paid to individuals’ implicit beliefs about the nature of intelligence. However, implicit beliefs about giftedness are currently underexamined. In the current study, we examined academically gifted adolescents’ implicit beliefs about both intelligence and giftedness. Overall, participants’ implicit beliefs about giftedness and intelligence were significantly positively correlated while also having statistically significant mean differences, suggesting that they perceived the nature of the two constructs differently. Specifically, many students viewed intelligence as malleable (incremental view) and giftedness as fixed (entity view), whereas very few students viewed giftedness as malleable and intelligence as fixed; however, heterogeneity was observed. The beliefs identified in the current study provide important insight into the domain-specific nature of implicit beliefs of gifted students and suggest that caution be used against using terms like giftedness and intelligence interchangeably. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

Adolescence is a period of development particularly vulnerable to the effects of alcohol use, with recent studies underscoring alcohol’s effects on adolescent brain development. Despite the alarming rates and consequences of adolescent alcohol use, gifted adolescents are often overlooked as being at risk for early alcohol use. Although gifted adolescents may possess protective factors that likely inhibit the use of alcohol, some gifted youth may be vulnerable to initiating alcohol use during adolescence as experimenting with alcohol may be one way gifted youth choose to compensate for the social price (whether real or perceived) of their academic talents. To address the dearth of research on alcohol use among gifted adolescents the current study (a) examined the extent to which gifted adolescents use alcohol relative to their nongifted peers and (b) examined the adjustment profile of gifted adolescents who had tried alcohol relative to nongifted adolescents who tried alcohol as well as gifted and nongifted abstainers. More than 300 students in seventh grade (42.5% gifted) participated in the present study. Results indicated gifted students have, in fact, tried alcohol at rates that do not differ from nongifted students. Although trying alcohol was generally associated with negative adjustment, giftedness served as a moderating factor such that gifted students who had tried alcohol were less at risk than their nongifted peers. However, evidence also suggests that gifted adolescents who tried alcohol may be a part of a peer context that promotes substance use, which may place these youth at risk for adjustment difficulties in the future. Putting the Research to Use: This research demonstrates that a fruitful line of future research would focus on examining the potential mechanisms underlying alcohol use among gifted youth. Individual differences with regard to endorsing a high desirability of gaining social acceptance or fitting in with non-gifted peers or distancing oneself from a “gifted” image may explain why some gifted students use alcohol and others do not. Until the underlying reasons of alcohol use/experimentation among gifted adolescents are better understood and researched further, it is not clear whether current prevention and intervention programs are effective for this subgroup of adolescents. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)