Emotional Development

Research in the area of the emotional development of gifted children is relatively new and has frequently not represented all populations of students with gifts and talents. Furthermore, not all gifted children are properly identified. Certain groups, such as Native Americans, African Americans, and Hispanic Americans, are often noticeably missing from the ranks of children identified as gifted.

Even so, some characteristics have been identified as more prevalent in gifted students, as have some circumstances that can leave gifted children vulnerable to a variety of emotional issues. Learning is not a purely cognitive phenomenon; rather, it is a process that is interwoven with students' emotional functioning within the context of their individual learning environments. For example, current brain research indicates that emotions play a part in ...