Perceptions of Giftedness and Self-Concepts among Junior Secondary Students in Hong Kong

This study explored the relationships among IQ, perceptions of giftedness, and self-concepts in a sample of 116 Chinese junior secondary school students in Hong Kong. These students, nominated by their schools to join the university gifted programs, were assessed on their IQ, global and domain-specific self-concepts, as well as their perceptions of their own giftedness in terms of their concern for feeling different, their critical attitude in evaluating their own performance, and their experience of high expectation to achieve from their parents. The findings indicated that in general the ways students perceived their giftedness affected differentially global self-worth and specific self-concept domains. While difference concern and critical evaluation affected students' specific self-concepts adversely, high parental expectation had a more positive influence. Self-concept domains related to social acceptance and friendship issues were most strongly and adversely affected. Implications of the findings for interventions to enhance the self-esteem of gifted students through restructuring their perceptions of giftedness are discussed.