Academic Perfectionism of High-Ability and High-Achieving Students in Mathematics and Science: Differential Relations by Identification Criteria of Giftedness

ABSTRACT

We investigated whether gifted students’ academic perfectionism is associated with their intellectual abilities or learned behaviors as they aim for achievement. Comparing four groups classified by achievement and intellectual ability among 443 Korean students, we examined the differential relations between gifted students and academic perfectionism by identification methods of giftedness. Using multigroup confirmatory factor analysis and multiple indicators multiple causes analysis, we found that students identified by their high intellectual ability were neither positive nor negative perfectionists. For high-achieving students, appropriate uses of perfectionistic self-regulation in academic settings were beneficial for their achievement. However, those students had a higher risk of depression when they lost control over their academic plans and behaviors, overwhelmed by their perfectionistic beliefs and excessive self-evaluations. The findings can be applied to the guidance and counseling for gifted students and underachieving students.

KEYWORDS:

• depression
• gifted students
• multigroup confirmatory factor analysis
• multiple indicators multiple causes
• perfectionism

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. Dai and Chen (2013) explained the current practices of gifted identification using achievement tests and other rating scales as flexible ways compared to the traditional way of using IQ tests.

2. The Korean National Research Center for Gifted and Talented Education (NRCGTE), which provides national guidelines for gifted and talented education in Korea, has specifically stated that it is important to avoid singling out students who have prior knowledge in subjects and those who are familiar with solving in typical achievement tests, which can be learned by prior learning from private tutoring (NRCGTE, n.d.).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Soohyun Yi

Soohyun Yi, PhD, is an assistant professor of Educational Psychology at Texas Tech University. Her scholarly trajectory aims to improve education for underserved and unmotivated students with impactful research and evidence-based interventions. Longitudinal research methodology is the main area of her expertise, which has enabled her to investigate growth trajectories of motivation and career choices, to identify opportunity gaps within underserved groups, and to evaluate and improve educational interventions in STEM. Email: [email protected]

Marcia Gentry

Marcia Gentry, PhD, directs the Gifted Education Research and Resource Institute at Purdue University where she enjoys working with doctoral students and engaging in research and gifted education professional development. She remains active in the field through service to the NAGC and AERA and by writing, reviewing, and presenting research aimed to improve education for children, youth, and teachers. She focuses on underserved populations and creating an equitable, socially just field. Email: [email protected]