Aspects of psychosocial development in gifted youth

This paper is a review of the literature regarding three aspects of psychosocial development in intellectually gifted children and adolescents. The first aspect pertains to the personal-i.e., self-concept in the gifted individual. The second is social-i.e., peer relations of the gifted. And the third aspect is familial- i.e., the relationships of the gifted and their family members. Although numerous studies have examined various aspects of giftedness, relatively few have investigated these personal, social, and familial facets of the gifted experience. Fewer still have examined these areas specifically in adolescents. While this paper reviews information regarding these domains in all ages of gifted children and adolescents, its main focus is on the gifted adolescent. Two primary obstacles encountered by the gifted regarding their self-views and their peer and family relations have been the dual stereotypes which have plagued them for decades, perhaps centuries. One belief sees them as social incompetents and misfits. The other, opposite view, suggested by Terman in the 1920' s, presents the gifted as superior not only intellectually, but also socially, physically, and in every other way. However, neither of these simplistic stereotypes emerges from the available research on the self-concept, peer relations, and familial relations of the gifted. Rather, the picture that comes forth is one of complex, multifaceted individuals who face not only all of the developmental tasks common to youth, but also a set of challenges unique to the gifted experience. Furthermore, the coping mechanisms and other behaviors which follow from these challenges are unique in themselves. In the area of self-concept in the gifted, the following topics are discussed: differences in global, academic, and social self-concept between gifted and nongifted students; the discrepancy between the higher academic self-concept and the lower social self-concept of the gifted; differences in self-concept between gifted groups placed in self-contained gifted classrooms and those in general education classrooms; and gender differences in self-concept in the gifted. Except for the area of academic self-concept in the gifted, which appears to be virtually uniformly higher in the studies, mixed results were reported regarding the other dimensions of self-concept. Concerning a comparison of peer relations in gifted and nongifted students, the following differences were seen in the gifted: a tendency to have older friends; less interest in social and competitive games; higher levels of sympathy/empathy, truthfulness, and perspective-taking; reported loneliness; lower levels of social self-confidence; heightened sensitivity to social responses of nongifted peers; feeling "different;" the effects of the social stigma of giftedness resulting in covering-of ability-behaviors among the gifted; and a tension between intimacy and achievement. Also discussed in this section are the increased risk for poor peer relations among the highly gifted and the unique social challenges facing gifted females. In the area of familial relations, gifted children and their families appear to function at a generally higher level than do nongifted students and their families. The literature reviews numerous differences in families with a gifted child including higher levels of adaptability, cohesion, expressiveness, active-recreational orientation, and intellectual-cultural orientation. Other studies reported higher levels of problem-solving, communication, positive roles, affective responses, behavior control, and general functioning. Parents with a gifted child were seen to be less authoritarian, more intelligent, and more assertive. Yet some negative aspects emerged in families with a gifted child, such as greater tension in the family, guilt and overinvestment in the gifted child, differential treatment of gifted and nongifted siblings, other negative effects on nongifted siblings, and parentification of and triangulation with the gifted child.