Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential

Mia Frumau-van Pinxten; Jan Derksen; Willy Peters

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11

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Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential

Mia Frumau-van Pinxten, Jan Derksen, Willy Peters

Published in International Journal of Secondary Education (Volume 9, Issue 3)

Received: 12 June 2021 Accepted: 28 June 2021 Published: 9 July 2021

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to enhance our understanding of what motivates gifted individuals. The focus was on how the personality traits of highly gifted and gifted adolescents differ from those of adolescents with above-average intelligence. In a longitudinal self-report study, the following traits were considered: Openness to Experience (Imagination), Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness (Benevolence), and Neuroticism. In addition, Strengths and Difficulties were assessed as an indicator of mental health. Participants were 561 highly gifted, gifted, and adolescents with above-average intelligence. Data was collected in grades 8 and 10. (R)MANOVAs were conducted with the Wilks’ Lambda statistic to investigate the difference between the three cognitive capacity groups in personality traits and Strengths and Difficulties. The findings showed highly gifted and gifted adolescents to differ significantly from cognitively above-average adolescents on two personality traits, namely: Openness to Experience and Conscientiousness. Openness to Experience increased significantly more from grade 8 to grade 10 for the both the highly gifted adolescents and gifted adolescents compared to the adolescents with above-average intelligence, moreover. These findings in addition to the findings that the lower-order facets of the personality trait Openness to Experience, namely Intellect and Curiosity, characterize the highly gifted and gifted adolescents more than adolescents with above-average intelligence are in keeping with the findings of other countries. Finally, the highly gifted females and gifted adolescents in grade 10 in our study scored higher (i.e., above average) on the lower-order Concentration facet of the personality trait Conscientiousness than the highly gifted males and adolescents with above-average intelligence. In line with our expectations, the adolescents in this study all reported comparable levels of emotional stability, agreeableness, difficulties, and positive or pro-social behavior on average. The present findings suggest that Curiosity should be recognized and stimulated in gifted young people as one of the key aspects of high developmental potential.

Published in	International Journal of Secondary Education (Volume 9, Issue 3)
DOI	10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11
Page(s)	74-85
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Gifted, Personality, Openness for Experience, High Developmental Potential, Strengths & Difficulties

References

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APA Style

Mia Frumau-van Pinxten, Jan Derksen, Willy Peters. (2021). Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential. International Journal of Secondary Education, 9(3), 74-85. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11

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ACS Style

Mia Frumau-van Pinxten; Jan Derksen; Willy Peters. Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential. Int. J. Second. Educ. 2021, 9(3), 74-85. doi: 10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11

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AMA Style

Mia Frumau-van Pinxten, Jan Derksen, Willy Peters. Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential. Int J Second Educ. 2021;9(3):74-85. doi: 10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11,
  author = {Mia Frumau-van Pinxten and Jan Derksen and Willy Peters},
  title = {Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential},
  journal = {International Journal of Secondary Education},
  volume = {9},
  number = {3},
  pages = {74-85},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijsedu.20210903.11},
  abstract = {The purpose of this study was to enhance our understanding of what motivates gifted individuals. The focus was on how the personality traits of highly gifted and gifted adolescents differ from those of adolescents with above-average intelligence. In a longitudinal self-report study, the following traits were considered: Openness to Experience (Imagination), Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness (Benevolence), and Neuroticism. In addition, Strengths and Difficulties were assessed as an indicator of mental health. Participants were 561 highly gifted, gifted, and adolescents with above-average intelligence. Data was collected in grades 8 and 10. (R)MANOVAs were conducted with the Wilks’ Lambda statistic to investigate the difference between the three cognitive capacity groups in personality traits and Strengths and Difficulties. The findings showed highly gifted and gifted adolescents to differ significantly from cognitively above-average adolescents on two personality traits, namely: Openness to Experience and Conscientiousness. Openness to Experience increased significantly more from grade 8 to grade 10 for the both the highly gifted adolescents and gifted adolescents compared to the adolescents with above-average intelligence, moreover. These findings in addition to the findings that the lower-order facets of the personality trait Openness to Experience, namely Intellect and Curiosity, characterize the highly gifted and gifted adolescents more than adolescents with above-average intelligence are in keeping with the findings of other countries. Finally, the highly gifted females and gifted adolescents in grade 10 in our study scored higher (i.e., above average) on the lower-order Concentration facet of the personality trait Conscientiousness than the highly gifted males and adolescents with above-average intelligence. In line with our expectations, the adolescents in this study all reported comparable levels of emotional stability, agreeableness, difficulties, and positive or pro-social behavior on average. The present findings suggest that Curiosity should be recognized and stimulated in gifted young people as one of the key aspects of high developmental potential.},
 year = {2021}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential
AU  - Mia Frumau-van Pinxten
AU  - Jan Derksen
AU  - Willy Peters
Y1  - 2021/07/09
PY  - 2021
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11
T2  - International Journal of Secondary Education
JF  - International Journal of Secondary Education
JO  - International Journal of Secondary Education
SP  - 74
EP  - 85
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2376-7472
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11
AB  - The purpose of this study was to enhance our understanding of what motivates gifted individuals. The focus was on how the personality traits of highly gifted and gifted adolescents differ from those of adolescents with above-average intelligence. In a longitudinal self-report study, the following traits were considered: Openness to Experience (Imagination), Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness (Benevolence), and Neuroticism. In addition, Strengths and Difficulties were assessed as an indicator of mental health. Participants were 561 highly gifted, gifted, and adolescents with above-average intelligence. Data was collected in grades 8 and 10. (R)MANOVAs were conducted with the Wilks’ Lambda statistic to investigate the difference between the three cognitive capacity groups in personality traits and Strengths and Difficulties. The findings showed highly gifted and gifted adolescents to differ significantly from cognitively above-average adolescents on two personality traits, namely: Openness to Experience and Conscientiousness. Openness to Experience increased significantly more from grade 8 to grade 10 for the both the highly gifted adolescents and gifted adolescents compared to the adolescents with above-average intelligence, moreover. These findings in addition to the findings that the lower-order facets of the personality trait Openness to Experience, namely Intellect and Curiosity, characterize the highly gifted and gifted adolescents more than adolescents with above-average intelligence are in keeping with the findings of other countries. Finally, the highly gifted females and gifted adolescents in grade 10 in our study scored higher (i.e., above average) on the lower-order Concentration facet of the personality trait Conscientiousness than the highly gifted males and adolescents with above-average intelligence. In line with our expectations, the adolescents in this study all reported comparable levels of emotional stability, agreeableness, difficulties, and positive or pro-social behavior on average. The present findings suggest that Curiosity should be recognized and stimulated in gifted young people as one of the key aspects of high developmental potential.
VL  - 9
IS  - 3
ER  -

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Author Information

Mia Frumau-van Pinxten

Faculty of Social Sciences, Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
Jan Derksen

Faculty of Social Sciences, Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
Willy Peters

Faculty of Social Sciences, Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands

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Mia Frumau-van Pinxten, Jan Derksen, Willy Peters. (2021). Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential. International Journal of Secondary Education, 9(3), 74-85. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11

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ACS Style

Mia Frumau-van Pinxten; Jan Derksen; Willy Peters. Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential. Int. J. Second. Educ. 2021, 9(3), 74-85. doi: 10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11

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AMA Style

Mia Frumau-van Pinxten, Jan Derksen, Willy Peters. Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential. Int J Second Educ. 2021;9(3):74-85. doi: 10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11,
  author = {Mia Frumau-van Pinxten and Jan Derksen and Willy Peters},
  title = {Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential},
  journal = {International Journal of Secondary Education},
  volume = {9},
  number = {3},
  pages = {74-85},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijsedu.20210903.11},
  abstract = {The purpose of this study was to enhance our understanding of what motivates gifted individuals. The focus was on how the personality traits of highly gifted and gifted adolescents differ from those of adolescents with above-average intelligence. In a longitudinal self-report study, the following traits were considered: Openness to Experience (Imagination), Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness (Benevolence), and Neuroticism. In addition, Strengths and Difficulties were assessed as an indicator of mental health. Participants were 561 highly gifted, gifted, and adolescents with above-average intelligence. Data was collected in grades 8 and 10. (R)MANOVAs were conducted with the Wilks’ Lambda statistic to investigate the difference between the three cognitive capacity groups in personality traits and Strengths and Difficulties. The findings showed highly gifted and gifted adolescents to differ significantly from cognitively above-average adolescents on two personality traits, namely: Openness to Experience and Conscientiousness. Openness to Experience increased significantly more from grade 8 to grade 10 for the both the highly gifted adolescents and gifted adolescents compared to the adolescents with above-average intelligence, moreover. These findings in addition to the findings that the lower-order facets of the personality trait Openness to Experience, namely Intellect and Curiosity, characterize the highly gifted and gifted adolescents more than adolescents with above-average intelligence are in keeping with the findings of other countries. Finally, the highly gifted females and gifted adolescents in grade 10 in our study scored higher (i.e., above average) on the lower-order Concentration facet of the personality trait Conscientiousness than the highly gifted males and adolescents with above-average intelligence. In line with our expectations, the adolescents in this study all reported comparable levels of emotional stability, agreeableness, difficulties, and positive or pro-social behavior on average. The present findings suggest that Curiosity should be recognized and stimulated in gifted young people as one of the key aspects of high developmental potential.},
 year = {2021}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Openness to Experience, a Personality Trait of Gifted Adolescents and One of the Key Factors of High Developmental Potential
AU  - Mia Frumau-van Pinxten
AU  - Jan Derksen
AU  - Willy Peters
Y1  - 2021/07/09
PY  - 2021
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11
T2  - International Journal of Secondary Education
JF  - International Journal of Secondary Education
JO  - International Journal of Secondary Education
SP  - 74
EP  - 85
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2376-7472
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsedu.20210903.11
AB  - The purpose of this study was to enhance our understanding of what motivates gifted individuals. The focus was on how the personality traits of highly gifted and gifted adolescents differ from those of adolescents with above-average intelligence. In a longitudinal self-report study, the following traits were considered: Openness to Experience (Imagination), Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness (Benevolence), and Neuroticism. In addition, Strengths and Difficulties were assessed as an indicator of mental health. Participants were 561 highly gifted, gifted, and adolescents with above-average intelligence. Data was collected in grades 8 and 10. (R)MANOVAs were conducted with the Wilks’ Lambda statistic to investigate the difference between the three cognitive capacity groups in personality traits and Strengths and Difficulties. The findings showed highly gifted and gifted adolescents to differ significantly from cognitively above-average adolescents on two personality traits, namely: Openness to Experience and Conscientiousness. Openness to Experience increased significantly more from grade 8 to grade 10 for the both the highly gifted adolescents and gifted adolescents compared to the adolescents with above-average intelligence, moreover. These findings in addition to the findings that the lower-order facets of the personality trait Openness to Experience, namely Intellect and Curiosity, characterize the highly gifted and gifted adolescents more than adolescents with above-average intelligence are in keeping with the findings of other countries. Finally, the highly gifted females and gifted adolescents in grade 10 in our study scored higher (i.e., above average) on the lower-order Concentration facet of the personality trait Conscientiousness than the highly gifted males and adolescents with above-average intelligence. In line with our expectations, the adolescents in this study all reported comparable levels of emotional stability, agreeableness, difficulties, and positive or pro-social behavior on average. The present findings suggest that Curiosity should be recognized and stimulated in gifted young people as one of the key aspects of high developmental potential.
VL  - 9
IS  - 3
ER  -

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