Social support systems and the disadvantaged gifted:A framework for developing programs and services∗

Most research on the talent development process has focused on middle class children and on the role of the family, particularly parents, in assisting talented children. Relatively little is known about the talent development of disadvantaged children, whose parents or families may not be able to play a central role in their development. This means that programs designed to help disadvantaged students are based on a “best guess” about what will be effective. In this article, we explore the literature on social networks and social support systems, which offers promising ideas for designing interventions for talented, economically disadvantaged children. Specifically, we extend the ideas of social support systems to giftedness and disadvantagement and present examples of two intervention programs based on these concepts.