According to the Mind map, several emotional and social traits or characteristics prevails from gifted students. The main characteristics include perfection, self-actualization, internal motivation or locus control, empathy, developed sense of humor, sensitivity, resilience, and Advanced levels of Moral maturity with consistency between values and actions. Perfectionism, also considered as the high expectation of self and others is when the gifted individuals referred to anything that does not achieve perfection as unacceptable. This characteristic is defined by striving for excellence, also known as healthy perfectionism and constant striving for unattainable and unrealistic goals, also known as neurotic perfectionism. As such, there has been a controversial debated centered on whether perfectionism is a positive trait that requires nurturing or a problem that should be cured.
Another important characteristic of a gifted student is the internal motivation or inner locus of control. According to Hebert (2010), "Locus of control is a theoretical construct to explain the degree to which an individual perceives a relationship between his own behavior and outcome of that behavior" (p.61). The locus of control exhibits other traits such as "inner will," or internal drive, believe in self and remain determined and hardworking, ability to overcome adversity in life, and remain focused to achieve the goals. For instance, Matteo suggests that his "inner will" is the driving force that helps him to achieve the academic goals. It motivates him to do something that he is curious about.
Emotional sensitivity, intensity, and depth also exhibit to a gifted student. A depth of feeling that helps people to identify with the others characterizes sensitivity. Therefore, sensitivity involves compassion and passion. Gifted students have a depth of feelings that shapes their day-to-day life experience and give them complexity and intensity to the emotional life. Such people are intensely self-critical and self-analytical. Students who possess the gift of sensitivity pursue their careers as investigative reporters, protectors of wildlife, peace activists, and poets. There, it is important to nature such characteristics when they exhibit to young people.
Empathy is considered as a psychological behavior that helps people to help others. According to the researchers, the empathic emption arouses altruistic motivation that helps individuals to enhance other human being's welfare. The empathic emotions such as compassion, sympathy, tenderness, and soft-heartedness induces this altruistic motivation to help other people. Hebert, suggests that strategies such as guidance toward self-understanding through literature and connect gifted students with collegiate role models, and friends should be applied (Hebert, 201). Other strategies involve facilitating social action and community service projects and encourage mentorship.
Other social and emotional characteristics and traits of gifted young include Advanced levels of Moral maturity with consistency between values and actions, a strong need for self-actualization, highly developed sense of humor, and reliance. A gifted individual possesses internalized principles that help them to differentiate between right and wrong and act on this distinction. With this light, young people act according to their ethical principles to help them achieve positive effects such as pride and escape negative moral emotions like shame or guilt. According to research conducted by Lewis, Karnes, and Knight, "gifted elementary and middle school students scored higher on measures of self-actualization than did nongifted students (Hebert, 201). Gifted young also know the role humor play in their life because creativity and humor are inseparable and interwoven. Finally, the gifted students can achieve social competence and emotional health despite the history of stress and adversity.
Mind Map of the Reading
References
Hebert, T. P. (2010). Understanding the social and emotional lives of gifted students. Sourcebooks.
