Psychological Problems of Intellectually Gifted Children: A Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

The study seeks to develop a more specific line of inquiry by stating that gifted adolescents are not at par in mental health, and may have mental health issues. As many of these disorders originate in childhood, the school and home personnel need to be aware of the broad range of signs and symptoms which children may demonstrate in their environment. The present study aimed to identify the psychological problems of clinically referred intellectually gifted children. A cross-sectional study with purposive sampling was used. Referrals from various clinicians of children with very high intelligence for over a year were included. Measurements include informed consent, socio-demographic data sheet, Standard Progressive Matrices (SPM), and Developmental Psychopathology Checklist (DPCL). Out of 81, 25 (31 per cent) children come under the category of Grade 1, above the 95 percentile. Findings on the psychopathology checklist reveal that about 50 per cent of the children with intellectual giftedness clustered under the category of internalising problems and about 40 per cent of children with intellectual giftedness tend to have externalising problems. About 20 per cent of children tend to be overlapped with both internalising and externalising problems. About 32 per cent of them tend to be overlapped within the cluster of externalising problems. Similarly, 36 per cent of them tend to be overlapped within the internalising cluster. Results of the present study suggest that intellectually gifted children are also vulnerable to mental health problems similar to or more than their peer group dealt with. It was also an eye-opener to the fact that gifted children exhibit behavioural or emotional problems, at least for minor groups requiring special interventions. By prioritising the social and emotional well-being of gifted students, schools can create inclusive and supportive learning environments where all students can thrive.