Perceptual and Motor Skills, 1991, 73, 443-446. O Perceptual and Motor Skills 1991

COMPARISON OF SELF-CONCEPTS O F STUDENTS IDENTIFIED AS GIFTED AND REGULAR STUDENTS ' FUNG L. YONG Department of Special Education Southern Illinois University, Carbondale

AND

JOHN D. McINTYRE

Department of Curricu[um and Inshucrion Southern Illinois University, Carbondale

Summary.-The purpose of the present study was to compare the self-concepts of 40 eighth grade students identified as gifted and 40 regular eighth grade students using the Piers-Harris Children's Self-concept Scale. A t test indicated a significant group difference on the behavior component only and no significant differences by gender. More similarities than differences were noted in self-concepts of these students identified as gifted and regular students.

Students, who are gifted, characterized by high intelligence and academic superiority, are frequently assumed to possess positive self-concepts, especially when living in a society where mental superiority is very much prized. Several studies have examined self-concept scores of students identified as gifted in relation to academic and social achievement (Brown & Karnes, 1982; Hunt & Randhawa, 1980; Lehman & Erdwin, 1981; Ross & Parker, 1980; Tidwell, 1980) and participation in gifted programs (Coleman & Fults, 1985; Crittenden, Kaplan, & Heim, 1984; Feldhusen, Sayler, Nielsen, & Kolloff, 1990; Karnes & Wherry, 1981; Kolloff & Feldhusen, 1784; Maddux, Scheiber, & Bass, 1982; Smith, 1980; Stopper, 1978). These studies have yielded apparently conflicting results. High scholastic achievement and participation in gifted programs may or may not be associated with more positive self-concepts among students who are gifted. The purpose of the present study was to compare mean self-concept scores of eighth grade students who had been identified as gifted with those of regular eighth grade students, using the Piers-Harris Children's Self-concept Scde (Piers, 1984).

Subjects The sample consisted of 40 eighth grade students identified as gfted and 40 regular eighth grade students. They were enrolled in two large public junior high schools located in Franklin and Williamson counties of southern Illinois. The gifted group consisted of 19 boys and 21 girls; the regular group consisted of 20 boys and 20 girls. The mean age of subjects was 13.0 yr. All subjects were white students. They were from communities representative of middle socioeconomic class status. 'Address correspondence to Dr. Fun Lan Yong, Department of Special Education, Southern Lllinois University at Carbondale, cartondale, IL 62901-4624.

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F. L. YONG & J. D. McINTYRE

Subjects were identified as glfted according to the standard guidelines established by the Illinois State Board of Education (Gifted Education Resource Guide, 1989). The Iowa Tests of Basic Slulls (Lindquist & Hieronymus, 1955), Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (Wechsler, 1974), Slosson Intelligence Test (Slosson, 1982), current grades, portfolios and auditions, parent and peer nominations, and teacher matrices are most frequently used by the schools to identify students who are gifted. Students identified as gifted typically scored at the 90th percentile or higher, or one standard deviation above the mean or higher on standardized reading and mathematics tests. An IQ estimate is only one component of the identification process, and students are selected for programs of the gifted without placing emphasis on any single criterion or cut-off score. Regular students were those who were not identified as gifted or handicapped; they showed average academic performance. Instrument The Piers-Harris Children's Self-concept Scale (Piers, 1984) has six combehavior, intellectual and school status, physical appearance and attributes, anxiety, popularity, and happiness and satisfaction. It has 80 items that are descriptive, for instance, "I am happy." They require "yes" or "no" responses. Its validity has been established through extensive factor and content analyses. Its KR-21 coefficients range from .78 to -93 for Grades 3 , 6, and 10. Split-half coefficients were .90 and .87 for Grades 6 and 10, respectively. Information on validity and reliability can be found in the technical manual.

Procedure Subjects were invited out of class to fill out the Piers-Harris scale. Completed forms were hand-scored by the first author according to the directions and key in the Piers-Harris technical manual. Accuracy was ascertained by rescoring all the forms.

RESULTS Means and standard deviations on the components of the self-concept are summarized by sex and for the total group in Table 1. A Student t test indicated a significant group difference on only the behavior component (t = 2.48, p

Comparison of self-concepts of students identified as gifted and regular students.

The purpose of the present study was to compare the self-concepts of 40 eighth grade students identified as gifted and 40 regular eighth grade student...
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