Profiles of Young Gifted and Normal Children

Abstract

Profiles of young gifted children are compared to profiles of normal children across a number of skills and abilities. Data are presented for the sample as a whole and as a function of sex and familial history of handedness. The results suggest that the gifted child is not necessarily gifted in all areas. Gifted children excel in memory and quantitative ability while there are no differences between the gifted and normal children in prereading skills or motor ability. Normal children show more advanced play behavior. In general, sex of children and handedness history operate similarly in the gifted and normal groups; males perform better than females and the right-handed children perform better than left-handed children.