Implicit Beliefs About Giftedness and Intelligence Among Gifted Students: A Cross-Cultural Study

• In Event: 26.080 - Roundtable Session 8
  In Roundtable Session: 26.080-17 - Conceptions of Giftedness

Abstract

Growing attention is being paid to the individuals’ implicit beliefs about the nature of intelligence; however, implicit beliefs about giftedness are currently under-examined. Academically gifted adolescents in the United States and India reported on implicit beliefs about giftedness and intelligence separately. Overall, academically gifted students viewed the two constructs as distinct. Many students viewed intelligence as malleable and giftedness as fixed but very few participants viewed giftedness as malleable and intelligence as fixed; thus, intelligence was viewed as more changeable than giftedness. On average, female students differentiated intelligence and giftedness more than male students. No cultural differences were detected for students’ implicit beliefs about giftedness. Findings suggest that researchers and educators should differentiate between these two types of implicit beliefs.

Authors

• Matthew C. Makel, Duke University

• Chandler Thomas, Duke University

• Kate E. Snyder, University of Louisville

• Martha Putallaz, Duke University