Psychological well-being of adolescents gifted in math, humanities and sports: Comparative analysis

• Main Authors: Elena N. Volkova, Svetlana A. Bezgodova, Anastasia V. Miklyaeva, Irina V. Volkova
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia 2020-12-01
• Series: Психология человека в образовании
• Subjects: psychological well-being; gifted teenagers; giftedness in math; giftedness in humanities; giftedness in sports
• Online Access: https://psychinedu.ru/index.php/main/article/view/122

Psychological well-being is an important factor for the successful realisation of gifted adolescents’ potential, and therefore research in this subject area has not only theoretical, but also practical significance. The results of contemporary research on gifted adolescents’ well-being are contradictory, and several decades of discussions about the relationship between giftedness and psychological well-being have yielded no consensus. This ambiguity may arguably be explained by the gifted adolescents’ activity type and gender. In this article, a study of the psychological well-being of adolescents (n = 168, age 15–17) gifted in math, humanities and sports who are enrolled in advanced programmes for gifted children is presented. The eudemonic concept of psychological well-being developed by Carol Ryff served as the theoretical framework of the study. Respondents’ psychological well-being was measured using Ryff’s Psychological Well-Being Scales as adapted into Russian by L. V. Zhukovskaya and E. G. Troshikhina. The study aimed to identify and analyse possible differences in the psychological well-being of gifted teenagers depending on their gender and type of giftedness. The results suggest that while the respondents’ general well-being score is not determined by their type of giftedness or gender, specific factors of psychological well-being, such as purpose in life and self-acceptance, do correlate with giftedness type. The highest scores were found in the sample of adolescents who are gifted in humanities. All detected gender differences fall under age-specific trends of personal development in adolescence, and giftedness type might reinforce these trends. The results of current study contribute to better understanding of the relationship between psychological well-being and giftedness in adolescence.