This study used a longitudinal person-oriented approach to examine whether two distinct developmental pathways of maladaptive motivation could be distinguished among high-ability students (intelligence quotient [IQ] [greater than or equal to] 120, N = 403, M[subscript age] = 12.2 years, 60.5% males), as proposed by the Pathways to Underachievement…

Little information exists concerning underrepresented students' talent development in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. This retrospective qualitative study investigated the talent development processes of five Black, seven Hispanic, and three Native American graduate students enrolled in STEM disciplines. All…

It is important to identify cognitive and achievement characteristics that differentiate students who are twice exceptional because they are gifted and have a learning disability (2e-LD) from gifted and average ability peers because this information informs empirically-based identification and support systems for this population. In this study, I…

Students' academic underachievement, defined as discrepancies between ability and academic performance, is a widespread problem leading to many negative consequences. Our study examines high school students' math underachievement, its motivational antecedents, and its impact on future math achievement, college attendance, and STEM (science,…

Acceleration is a well-researched educational intervention supporting positive outcomes for high-ability students. However, access to acceleration may be restricted due to educators' misapprehensions about this practice. To better understand whether students share educators' concerns, our study explored 26 high-ability students' beliefs about…

Terman's study was the first to systematically document the lives of the intellectually gifted. This cross-sectional study replicates and extends some of Terman's findings on characteristics of the gifted in childhood, comparing largely unselected samples of gifted (n = 50) and average-ability (n = 50) adolescents matched by means of propensity…

According to the reciprocal-effects model (REM), prior academic self-concept (ASC) has a positive effect on subsequent achievement beyond what can be explained in terms of prior achievement and vice versa. The present study investigated the REM for students studying in special classes for the gifted compared to students studying in regular…

Few topics have garnered more attention in preservice teacher training and educational reform than student diversity and its influence on learning. However, the actual degree of cognitive diversity has yet to be considered regarding instructional implications for advanced learners. We used four data sets (three state-level and one national) from…

Gifted students often fail to achieve at a superior level in one or more academic areas. In this reply to an article by Assouline, Nicpon, and Whiteman, the author reviews various explanations for this phenomenon, including motivation/interest, learning opportunities, and error in measuring students' ability-achievement discrepancies. The author…

Established in the early 1970s, the talent search model has garnered strong theoretical and programming support for addressing the academic needs of highly able students. The two main components of the talent search model are discovery (identification) and development (programming) of academic talent. Discovery of academically talented elementary…

Students of color are often underrepresented in academic programs for gifted and talented students. This study explored the impact of The Teacher's Observation of Potential in Students (TOPS) tool on teachers' ability to systematically observe and document the academic strengths of 5-to 9-year-old students across nine domains. Teachers indicated…

Academic self-concept predicts students' future goals and is affected by a student's relative success compared with his or her peer group. This exploratory study used structural equation modeling to examine the contributions of the perceived level of difficulty of the curriculum, in addition to the contributions of social comparison and…

This myth that the gifted constitute a single, homogeneous group is addressed by the authors in this article. They respond by saying that there is no single homogeneous group of gifted children and adults, and giftedness is developmental, not fixed at birth. Research in the past few decades has pointed to the ways in which gifts and talents vary,…

Although there are several explanations for why one succeeds or fails, effort and ability are the major causes that students report. The purpose of the present study was to measure the perceptions of 149 college freshmen enrolled in a university honors program about their skills in 15 talent areas. In addition, this study explored the relationship…

This article describes a set of 10 positively stated commandments designed to guide professionals responsible for the academic talent development of K-12 students. The first four target identification procedures, the "who" of talent development; they ensue directly from the conceptual framework of my Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent.…