Date of Award

1999

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

Education

First Advisor

Pamela Nickels

Second Advisor

Dawn Niedner

Third Advisor

Marilyn Patterson

Abstract

Adolescence is a time of change and uncertainty. Adolescents strive for belonging and acceptance while concurrently seeking a unique identity. Research on gifted adolescents demonstrates that as a group, they exhibit good psychosocial adjustment. Other research contends that being both gifted and adolescent may make some, vulnerable to certain difficulties. This study uses an author- designed survey to examine the concerns of 63 gifted high school students from four school districts in suburban St. Louis. Survey items reflect concerns expressed in the literature and are clustered into areas of concern: existential concerns, internal conflicts, school/academics, expectations of others, perfection/fear of failure, career conflicts, and peer concerns. Cluster data is statistically quantified, rank-ordered, and analyzed. Independent t-tests observe for gender differences in concerns. Group results displayed only moderate levels of concern within the clusters. Group results also revealed no significant gender differences within concern clusters. However, analysis of individual items isolated from clusters revealed substantially higher levels of concern for many of the items. Many students voiced significant concerns in response to an open-ended question. It appears that many gifted adolescents are vulnerable to a multitude of issues arising from their giftedness. Concerns, however, may vary with each individual. Recommendations are made for future research and practice.

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