Social support and adjustment in gifted adolescents.

Abstract

We investigated the role of perceived social support in facilitating adjustment to a residential high school for the gifted in science and math. The relation between social support and adjustment appeared to depend on the sex of the student and the source of support, and the specific type of adjustment examined. Successful overall adjustment to the school environment was related to perceived support from family, whereas psychological adjustment showed a clear relation to perceived support in general. Perceived support from peers related to psychological adjustment only for male adolescents. Female adolescents appeared to seek other sources of support when they perceived support from a particular source to be low. Thus, adjustment problems for female adolescents appeared to result only when they were unable to locate other sources.

The relationship between perceived social support and maladjustment for students at risk

“…Additionally, parent, classmate, and close friend support were significantly related to personal adjustment indicators (e.g., interpersonal relations) with no significant relationships found with teacher and school support (with one exception). These results are supported by previous research findings (Dunn et al, 1987;East et al, 1987;Garnefski & Diekstra, 1996;Kashani et al, 1994;Malecki & Demaray, 2002). Finally, school maladjustment indicators were significantly related to parent, teacher, and school support and not related to classmate and close friend support.…”

“…Only parent support significantly predicted personal adjustment. Therefore, as expected and as previous research suggests, parent and classmate support seem to play an important role in the clinical and personal outcomes experienced by adolescents (Dunn et al, 1987;East et al, 1987;Garnefski & Diekstra, 1996;Malecki & Demaray, 2001;Kashani et al, 1994). Regarding school maladjustment indicators, it was predicted that teacher and school support would be most predictive.…”

“…For example, perceived social support has been found to be related to more positive outcomes for children (a) of divorce, (b) with learning disabilities, (c) identified as gifted, and (d) classified as at risk (Cauce, Felner, & Primavera, 1982;Cowen, Pedro-Carroll, & Alpert-Gillis, 1990;Dunn et al, 1987;Forman, 1988;Kloomok & Cosden, 1994;Rothman & Cosden, 1995;VanTassel-Baska, Olszewski-Kubilius, & Kulieke, 1994;. Last, researchers have reported that children and adolescents with high perceived levels of social support often have been found to have fewer adjustment problems (Compas et al, 1986;East et al, 1987;Hirsch, 1985;Hoffman, Ushpiz, & Levy-Shift, 1988).…”

“…Specifically, low levels of both peer and family support are associated with adjustment and behavioral problems (Dunn, Putallaz, Sheppard, & Lindstrom, 1987;East, Hess, & Lerner, 1987;Kashani, Canfield, Borduin, Soltys, & Reid, 1994), delinquency (Licitra-Kleckler & Waas, 1993), withdrawn behavior and hopelessness (Kashani et al, 1994), emotional problems (Garnefski & Diekstra, 1996), depression (Cheng, 1997;Licitra-Kleckler & Waas, 1993), and lower self-concept (Forman, 1988;Wenz-Gross, Siperstein, Untch, & Widaman, 1997). A higher level of family support is more often associated with better school adjustment and higher academic self-concept (Dunn et al, 1987;. Fewer studies have examined support from other sources such as teacher support; however, research indicates that higher levels of teacher support or better social support networks with teachers and peers are associated with better school-related outcomes such as not being a victim of school violence (Furlong, Chung, Bates, & Morrison, 1995).…”

Distinktivni Profil Porodica Akademski Darovitih Adolescenata

“…No, ukoliko porodičnu podršku stavimo u kontekst konkretnog domena manifestovanja darovitosti, dolazimo do zapažanja da korpus nalaza o ovom problemu ipak nudi jasniju osnovu za izvođenje opštijih zaključaka. Naime, s obzirom na to da porodična podrška doprinosi boljoj psihološkoj prilagođenosti pojedinca, te konsekventno i njegovoj boljoj adaptaciji na uslove školskog života (Cornell & Grossberg, 1987;Dubow & Tisak, 1989;Dunn, Putallaz, & Sheppard, 1987), dolazi se do zaključka da podrška članova porodice ima važnu ulogu u razvoju talenta u akademskim domenima. Sa druge strane, ako znamo da se kreativnost shvata i kao sposobnost modifikacije i preoblikavanja spoljnog okruženja, nasuprot adaptaciji (Taylor, 1973, prema Taylor, 2009), prilično je jasno da su visoki dometi u kreativnoj produkciji mogući i u uslovima oskudne podrške porodice.…”