Emotional and behavioral problems among highly intellectually gifted youth

There is some controversy in the literature regarding the relationship between exceptionally high intellectual ability and psychosocial adjustment. Despite some evidence to the contrary, myths persist about an inverse relationship. Using a well standardized scale of emotional and behavioral problems, this study examined this relationship with 191 intellectually gifted youth ages 13 to 15 years. Results indicated that the youth's scores on the scale were well within normative ranges and the most highly gifted of the group tended to exhibit fewer problems than the moderately gifted. Thus, these findings are contrary to some popular myths about highly intellectually gifted youth.