Reframing Social and Emotional Development of the Gifted

This essay questions the framing of socioemotional development as a separate concomitant of cognitive development in gifted individuals. Rather, it argues, first, that socioemotional development of the gifted is not separate from giftedness. Second, socioemotional development is not even cleanly and clearly separable from cognitive development. Third, giftedness and even intelligence do not reside inside the person-they are not personal properties but rather interactions of persons with tasks and situations. In sum, giftedness needs to be viewed in a holistic context that encompasses integrated cognitive, socio-emotional, task, and situational contextual elements.