The cognitive development of 125 gifted 10-to 15-year-old students was compared to that of 98 normal Ss. Results supported the invariance of stage progression but revealed that gifted Ss progress more quickly and demonstrate earlier transition to succeeding developmental stages. (CL)

Examination of the child prodigy phenomenon suggests it is a result of extremely accelerated mental development during sensitive periods that leads to the rapid growth of a child's cognitive resources and their construction into specific exceptional achievements. (Author/DB)

This study examines development along Perry's intellectual and ethical scale among three successive graduating classes of students identified as gifted and talented in mathematics and science. Perry posits that intellectual development proceeds from a basic dualism through nine stages ("positions") and culminates with a sense of personal identify…

Explores giftedness from infancy to adolescence within a psychodynamic developmental framework. Gifted development is discussed in terms of drive, ego functions, object relations, and self-experience. Also discussed are the history of giftedness, gifted infants and preschoolers, gifted school-age children, and giftedness in male and female…

Investigated with 58 gifted children (in grades 5 or 6) were differences in right and left hemispheric brain functions in the context of J. Piaget's theories of stages of cognitive development. (DB)

Research conducted between 1975-85 on cognitive styles, cognitive development, cognitive strategies, and social and emotional factors associated with the academic setting was reviewed to determine differences between gifted and nongifted learners. Significant differences were found in all four areas. (Author/CB)

A study of 33 gifted children (ages 6-12) showed that external indicators of smartness were synthesized with internal factors of feelings and judgments about intelligence. A developmental progress in the children's understanding was found which suggests that age is a factor to consider when discussing giftedness with children. (Author/CR)

A study of 700 children (ages 5-12) investigated whether children's conceptions of and expectations of friendship are determined by chronological age or by mental age. Results found children of differing intellectual abilities pass through the five conception stages of friendship at different ages and at different rates. (Contains 4 references.)…

The development of formal operations in normal adolescents is briefly examined, and a discussion of the development of exceptional adolescents focuses on the following exceptionalities: retardation, blindness, deafness, and giftedness. Some directions for future research are considered. (DLS)

The project is based on a general systems approach. Developmental stage theory is employed as a starting point, and the developmental "minitasks" which act as stair risers from one developmental level to another are carried through with the use of Bloom's cognitive taxonomy. (Author/DLS)

This research attempted to identify categories of cognitive development existing in creative writing samples (written by over 5000 gifted children ages 9-18) that provide a basis for developmental analysis. Four categories with three levels of development in each were identified: (1) self, (2) others, (3) problem solving, and (4) abstractness of…

This article reviews some current principles of brain research, including the idea that intelligence and its nurture is no longer restricted to the linear, rational cognitive function, but includes the integration of the cognitive (linear and spatial), emotional-social, physical, and intuitive. The principles of teaching and learning supported by…

Examines six sets of data on giftedness and creativity, finding little evidence for the belief that creativity in adults is mirrored in children. Questions whether children are creative, and whether creativity can be taught. Discusses creation of transitional objects; gaps, novelty, curiosity, and exploration; puberty as a developmental marker;…

This study examined the transition from concrete to formal operations in very bright children in an effort to determine whether high ability in concrete operations would carry over into formal operational ability, and also to investigate precocity in regard to formal operations. Subjects were 38 white middle-class children ranging in age from…

The digest addresses ways that parents and educators can nurture giftedness in young children. Problems in appropriate school placement for young gifted children with uneven development are discussed and illustrated with examples. In selecting a program, parents need to look for a highly individualized program in which children are encouraged to…