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Although it has been hypothesized that gifted students are at risk for adopting a fixed mind-set, research revealed inconsistent results. We aimed to clarify this by differentiating between two operationalizations of giftedness (high cognitive ability and formal identification as gifted) and how these relate to students’ beliefs about intelligence and effort. Also, we examined the role of parental antecedents on students’ beliefs. Participants were 3,329 seventh-grade students and their parents. Only being labeled as gifted was related to adopting a fixed mind-set. Regarding parental antecedents, parents’ intelligence and effort beliefs were related to students’ corresponding beliefs. Furthermore, parental feedback was associated with students’ beliefs, which was most pronounced when student-reports of feedback were used. In particular, person-oriented feedback related positively to a fixed mind-set and negatively to students’ appreciation of the role of effort in academic performance, while process-oriented feedback showed the opposite pattern. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

In a recent position statement, the National Association of Gifted Children argued the importance of providing equitable treatment of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and other sexual and gender minority individuals (LGBTQ +) gifted youth to help them maximize their potential. However, there are very few empirical studies focusing on the intersection of giftedness and gender identities. Little is known regarding these students’ experience at, and outside of, school. Focusing on the individual process of gender identity development and self-acceptance, we interviewed nine LGBTQ + postsecondary students in North America (aged between 19 and 29 years) who are graduates of an academically focused high school in Turkey. In particular, we studied their ways of thinking, stress coping strategies, and environmental factors that may have enabled their self-acceptance of LGBTQ + identities. Findings of the study show that the mental health of LGBTQ + is a function of individual factors (e.g., coping strategies), structural factors (e.g., a homophobic sociocultural environment), and the context. The findings also indicate the benefits of complexity and reflectiveness in thinking, metacognition and the ability to separate identity labels from identities, enabled by high school peer support, liberal curriculum and classroom discussions, and access to information during adolescence. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

The present study reports the construction process of a screening-type scale for evidence indicating academic giftedness (Scale for Nominating Intellectual Giftedness: teacher version [ENDI-p]), as well as presenting evidence of content validity. The construction of the items was based on the ten broad domains of the theoretical model of intelligence known as Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC): fluid intelligence, quantitative knowledge, short- term memory, long-term memory storage and retrieval, visual processing, auditory processing, processing and execution speed, reaction, and decision speed, reading and writing; initially containing 80 items. Such items were evaluated by five reviewers. The results showed that 21 items (26.2 %) were excluded once they did not reach an agreement value equal to or greater than 80 %. The kappa coefficient between judges was adequate. Version 2 of the scale is ready to be used in future studies which aim at investigating its psychometric qualities. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract) Resumen en idioma originalO presente estudo relata o processo de construção de uma escala do tipo rastreio para sinais indicativos de dotação acadêmica (Escala para Nomeação de Dotação Intelectual: versão professor [ENDI-p]), bem como apresentar evidências de validade de conteúdo. A construção dos itens foi baseada nos dez domínios amplos do modelo teórico sobre inteligência conhecido como Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC): inteligência fluida, raciocínio matemático quantitativo, memória de curto prazo, armazenamento e recuperação em longo prazo, processamento visual, processamento auditivo, rapidez de processamento e execução, velocidade de reação e decisão, leitura e escrita; contendo, inicialmente, 80 itens. Tais itens foram avaliados por cinco juízes. Os resultados demonstraram que 21 itens (26,2 %) foram excluídos por não alcançarem valor de concordância igual ou maior do que 80 %. O coeficiente kappa entre os juízes foi adequado. A versão 2 da escala está pronta para ser utilizada em estudos futuros voltados à investigação das suas qualidades psicométricas. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract) Resumen en idioma originalEl presente estudio reporta el proceso de construcción de una escala tipo cribado para signos indicativos de dotación académica (Escala para Nomeação de Dotação Intelectual: versão professor [ENDI-p]), además de presentar evidencia de validez de contenido. La construcción de los ítems se basó en los diez amplios dominios del modelo teórico sobre inteligencia, conocido como Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC): inteligencia fluida, razonamiento matemático cuantitativo, memoria a corto plazo, almacenamiento y recuperación a largo plazo, procesamiento visual, procesamiento auditivo, velocidad de procesamiento y ejecución, velocidad de reacción y decisión, lectura y escritura; inicialmente con 80 ítems. Estos elementos fueron evaluados por cinco jueces. Los resultados mostraron que se excluyeron 21 ítems (26.2 %) por no alcanzar un valor de concordancia igual o superior al 80 %. El coeficiente kappa entre jueces fue adecuado. La versión 2 de la escala está lista para ser utilizada en futuros estudios destinados a investigar sus cualidades psicométricas. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

This study explored the relationships among giftedness, adjustment problems, and psychological distress in a sample of 215 Chinese junior secondary school students (aged 12-15 yrs) in Hong Kong. These students, nominated by their schools to join the university gifted programs, were assessed on their giftedness as reflected in scores of nonverbal reasoning and divergent thinking, on their adjustment problems in 6 areas, and on their psychological distress in terms of 5 specific symptom areas. The findings indicated that divergent thinking, unlike nonverbal reasoning, had a notable influence on specific psychological symptoms. Students' concerns with interpersonal relationships, as well as the recognition of their abilities, and their concerns for being different emerged as the 2 most important adjustment problems predicting specific psychological symptoms. The implications of the findings for preventive interventions to help gifted students in the promotion of their psychological well-being are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Research has indicated that gifted adolescents use a variety of measurable social coping strategies to mitigate perceived negative social effects of being identified as gifted in school. The precocious development of gifted children suggests that similar strategies also might be used by gifted elementary school students. Two studies of gifted 3rd through 7th graders who enrolled in a summer academic program explored the possibility that social coping strategies can be adequately measured among gifted elementary students. Study 1 provided a good replication of results from studies of gifted adolescents, and Study 2 replicated Study 1. Six social coping strategies, very similar to those identified in studies of gifted adolescents, were identified: denying giftedness, minimizing focus on popularity, social interaction, humor, conformity, and denying an impact of giftedness on peer acceptance. The last two scales were unreliable with young students, however. No consistent gender differences in social coping were found, but comparisons by grade level indicated that older students are more focused on popularity than are younger students. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

This study sought to assess the viability of the use of a self-report checklist identifying different aspects of giftedness in a sample of 192 Chinese secondary students (aged 12–18 yrs old) from a multiple intelligences perspective. For comparison, IQ, creativity, and leadership characteristics of these students were also assessed using conventional standardized measures. Data on academic achievement in Chinese language, English language, and mathematics were obtained from school records. While students perceived the 7 intelligences as relatively distinct abilities, these self-estimates of the 7 intelligences did not generally predict the conventional measures, suggesting that the 7 intelligences and the conventional measures provided independent and possibly complementary information on aspects of giftedness. The implications of the development of a profile of strengths and weaknesses of students from a multiple intelligences perspective for subsequent identification and programming are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Replies to the comments of J. H. Borland (see record 1999-10122-002), D. K. Detterman and J. Ruthsatz (see record 1999-10122-003), D. H. Feldman (see record 1999-10122-004), E. A. Hany (see record 1999-10122-005), and N. M. Robinson (see record 1999-10122-006) on the original article by F. Gagné (see record 1999-10122-001) concerning his structured statements about the nature of human abilities, talents, and gifts. Gagné defends the worthiness of his quest to achieve some consensus among professionals in the field of gifted education over the definition of the core concepts of giftedness and talent and also, the validity and usefulness of his distinction between high natural abilities (gifts) and high systematically developed ones (talents) in comparison to alternative proposals. He finally reiterates, in the light of the criticisms received, the basic arguments supporting his conviction that his own differentiation between giftedness and talent is the most appropriate and defensible solution to gifted education's terminological conundrum. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

In a survey conducted in 50 kindergartens or nursery schools in Nigeria, 380 teachers returned batches of eight variously completed checklists, inventories and rating scales through which a total of 615 preschoolers were adjudged to possess significant traits of giftedness as prescribed by all the instruments. To determine the effectiveness of the instruments for nominating potentially gifted kindergartners, data were collated for each instrument in terms of the number (n) and percentage of children found eligible in the pool of all nominated kindergartners (N) through all instruments. Results generally indicated that some of the instruments developed in the United States were more effective than those developed in Nigeria for nominating preschool children who significantly evidence traits of giftedness. Checklists and inventories were also found to rank better than rating scales in the nomination exercise. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved)

This article addresses the cross-cultural generalization of the pentagonal implicit theory of giftedness (R. J. Sternberg and L. F. Zhang, 1995) as well as differential expectations regarding excellence for girls vs boys. An instrument based on the pentagonal theory was used with a sample of 72 in-service and pre-service teachers (aged 20–50 yrs). In a second study, a questionnaire designed to assess conceptions of "excellence", one of the attributes for giftedness described in the pentagonal model, was administered to a different sample of 102 in-service and pre-service teachers (aged 22–48 yrs). Results showed a good fit of the pentagonal model to the data collected, paralleling results obtained in the US. However, it was also found that in Hong Kong, unlike in the US, teachers had higher expectations of excellence for boys than for girls. Implications for identification, instruction, and programming for the gifted are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Suggests that the lens through which the gifted Self sees the world is at once complex and vividly intense. Giftedness is seen as a ground of experience that differs significantly from the norm. Just as developmental delay produces lifelong effects on social and emotional development, academic achievement, home life, response of the community, and career goals, developmental advancement exerts a profound impact on the Self, permeating all facets of a person's life in childhood and adulthood. Children with significant developmental differences in either direction require modifications in parenting, teaching and counseling in order for the Self to be fully realized. Because their abstract reasoning abilities enable the gifted to compensate, true disabilities and disorders are often masked, while typical behaviors of the gifted may be misinterpreted. Diagnosticians, school psychologists, therapists and educators need to be aware of the characteristics of giftedness in order to recognize what is atypical for this population, rather than comparing gifted individuals with the general population. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Provides a critical overview of the existing research literature on gifted children and their families. The purposes of this paper were: (1) to provide family therapists with information on the unique psychosocial stressors associated with giftedness, and (2) to stimulate further research and development on the efficacy of family therapy in alleviating distress and actualizing potential in gifted and talented children and their families. First, current conceptualizations of giftedness are described. Then the research literature on the characteristics of intellectually and creatively gifted children and their families is reviewed with an emphasis on the endogenous (individual) and exogenous (systemic) factors that can create or exacerbate psychosocial problems. Finally, an eclectic, eco-systemic approach is suggested to three common concerns that bring gifted children and their families to therapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

This paper reports on a small scale study carried out in a large Australian school to investigate student perceptions of giftedness, preferred teacher qualities, and ways of providing for gifted students in the school setting. 80 students, aged 12–16 yrs, from grades 8, 9, and 10 participated. 40 students with IQs of 130 and above were identified as gifted, and 40 students with a mean IQ of 106 as nongifted. 76% of Ss said giftedness in sport was most valued. Far less important were academic skills (27%), music (22%), and maths and the arts (both 18%). Both gifted and nongifted Ss believed that students generally feel positive or neutral about special provisions when they are not involved in them (43% were positive and 39% neutral). When asked how they felt personally about special provisions for the gifted, 34% were highly positive and 36% positive (70%), with 23% using neutral ratings. The teacher quality most often important by the total group was that the teacher should "know the subject well." Gifted students chose 3 qualities as particularly important: that the teacher "knows the subject well," "is interested in students," and "doesn't stick to the text all the time." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Demonstrates that the cognitive complexity and certain personality traits, such as heightened moral sensitivity, of the gifted create unique experiences and awareness that separate them from others. This awareness is demonstrated using a combination of clinical observations and theoretical propositions from case examples. A central feature found to be part of the gifted experience is their moral sensitivity, essential to the welfare of the entire society, yet making them vulnerable to environmental exposure. These inner qualities of the gifted are overlooked in most of the formulations of giftedness and talent. Giftedness defined as asynchronous development, a phenomenological approach, focuses on the inner world of gifted children and stresses their vulnerability in society. The need to understand the relationship between abstract reasoning, complexity, moral values, and the evolution of society is stressed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Contends that gifted young people without an accurate and realistic self-concept create emotional difficulties for themselves that prevent them from fully using their talents in constructive or satisfying ways. They frequently misunderstand what giftedness means in their lives, hold unrealistically high expectations for their own achievement, confuse the means and the ends of their accomplishments, overvalue their cognitive dimensions at the expense of their affective natures, or view giftedness as an entitlement. It is suggested that gifted youth need help to build accurate and realistic self-concepts, to develop realistic expectations of themselves, and to place their intellectual talents in the proper perspective. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Argues that, on the basis of classroom observations, preschoolers (PSs) do show evidence of giftedness. In nearly all preschools, one routinely observes happenings characteristic of the 6 areas of giftedness delineated by S. P. Marland (1972). For example, PSs may be seen reading and discussing the extinction of dinosaurs or suggesting uses for common household objects that adults never imagined. PSs do not appear to be restricted from possessing or displaying a variety of gifts or talents. However, gifted PSs are in a double-jeopardy situation because they are a minority and, historically, gifted programs for PSs have lagged behind those for older gifted children. The sparsity of such programs may have long-term negative consequences: Gifted children may never reach their potential if they miss experiences early in life that are necessary for maximum development. Some researchers have suggested that a lack of support during the early childhood years is one reason for the underachievement of many gifted adolescents. An enriched, child-responsive preschool environment that affords opportunities for all children to demonstrate and develop gifts specific to them would meet the educational and affective needs of children who normally would have been identified as gifted or who would have been overlooked. (40 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Assessed the accuracy of teachers in primary and secondary schools in determining which children are able or gifted. Teachers' accuracy of the perception of giftedness was compared with that of the individually administered intelligence test, and the accuracy of the perception of giftedness by teachers and psychologists of primary and secondary school children and males vs females was also compared. 82 male and 81 female primary and secondary schoolchildren considered gifted by the heads of the school and teachers were administered the WISC. Results show that (1) there was a greater tendency by all teachers to overrate rather than underrate children as gifted in primary schools, (2) there were relatively fewer gifted children in secondary schools assessed by teachers and psychologists, (3) there was a strong tendency for teachers at secondary schools to underrate children, (4) more females than males were overrated as to being able by teachers at both primary and secondary school levels, and (5) more males than females were underrated as able at both primary and secondary school levels. Findings indicate that teachers, although they are able to identify a certain number of able children, do in fact underrate and overrate the performance of children generally on the basis of academic achievement. (30 ref) (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

This is a highly condensed report of a 5-year pattern of research studies made on 45 gifted children from Grade III through Grade VII in the University of Chicago Laboratory School. The test and observation data are interpreted in terms of personality differences associated with differing patternings of academic achievement, sex differences, and the attending social motivational pictures. Inferences relevant to educational practices are drawn. 20 references. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved)

Reviews the book, Gifted at risk: Poetic portraits by Jean Sunde Peterson (2009). In this book, Peterson utilizes subjective personal introspection, or autoethnography, to render poems and essays about her years in gifted education and in counseling gifted students. As complementary constructions, each one of Peterson’s reflections about a particular case includes a poem and an essay. As arts-based research in education, each entry is from Peterson’s own impressions and memories about a specific gifted student, whom she taught or counseled. For anyone who works with adolescents and emerging adults who are gifted, Peterson’s book will be an informative resource. It does not stand alone as a textbook to introduce topics about giftedness, as it lacks explicit definitions, citations, and references. However, together with one or two more thorough treatments of giftedness research, it will do well. Counselors will come back to its pages numerous times as they work with gifted students. It will be a resource for them to reflect about the struggles and triumphs of gifted life—with highs and lows being realistically recounted. Its coverage—from moving toward good decisions, to suicide attempts and suffering abuse, to an eye toward “developmental task accomplishment”, is broad. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved)

The study brings first empirical experience with the diagnostic use of the Czech adaptation of the international method called Woodcock-Johnson International Edition (WJ IE COG, Ruef, Furman, Muñoz-Sandoval, 2006). It is a first standardised cognitive battery in the Czech Republic that has adopted Cattell-Horn-Carroll new internationally acknowledged hierarchical model of cognitive abilities. The method was applied to a research sample (N =118) of extraordinarily gifted individuals with and without dyslexia. The authors point out some important findings concerning especially issues of determining an appropriate criterion to identify giftedness in a group of gifted students and students with dyslexia. It shows that in case of this group of individuals it is impossible to derive the giftedness criterion only from the global IQ but it is necessary to analyse also wider factors of abilities or also abilities measured by the method themselves. themselves. Primary diagnostic attention needs to be paid particularly to the Thinking ability factor and Verbal ability factor. Performance in the so-called Cognitive efficiency factor may be significantly harmed by a learning disability. Moreover, the study also tries to compare the achieved performance profile in the given method in the examined groups of gifted probands with a performance profile of intellectually gifted students obtained by administering a more extensive American version of the test published recently. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

Reviews the book, Critical issues and practices in gifted education: What the research says edited by Jonathan A. Plucker and Carolyn M. Callahan (see record 2008-01728-000). Over the years, gifted education has received substantial criticism in and beyond the research literature (e.g., Grant, 2002; Sapon-Shevin, 1993). Criticisms have fallen into several camps. One group of critics describes gifted education as elitist and suggests that there should not be special programs for high-achieving students. Others criticize how giftedness is defined and more frequently how gifted students are identified, and even suggest that gifted education is responsible for maintaining the achievement gap. Some critics comment on the programming choices available for students who are identified, and others criticize the field of gifted education for making decisions based on fads and myths rather than empirical evidence. This context provides a backdrop for the publication of Critical issues and practices in gifted education: What the research says. In this book, the authors have attempted to bring together research that addresses almost all of the aforementioned issues. Their goal is aptly stated in the book’s introduction: “Despite a century of research on giftedness, the enthusiasm and rhetoric surrounding...services offered to gifted students often exceeds the level of available empirical support—or even contradicts the available evidence” (Plucker & Callahan, 2008b, pp. 1). The editors go on to state that their goal is to be inclusive, but brief. Thus, they included chapters across several domains—conceptual and foundational issues, curriculum, cognition, affect, programming, issues related to teacher and parents, and special populations—that are synopses rather than comprehensive reviews of the empirical literature in the field. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)