Research challenging the existence of OEs was reviewed and found to employ weak measures of giftedness. Numerous studies have explored the relationship between giftedness and OEs.Ī recent meta-analysis of studies comparing gifted with non-gifted individuals found significant mean effect sizes for all five OEs the giftedness-OE relationship is more pronounced among highly gifted individuals (Steenbergen-Hu, 2017). The OEQ-II has been translated into 7 different language groups and 14 languages. It has been validated in several factor analytic studies. The concept of overexcitability is statistically robust. Yes, a considerable amount of research has been conducted since 1980, and new studies are published frequently. Is there empirical evidence that gifted children and adults have greater OE? Dabrowski (1938) actually constructed the concept of overexcitability before he developed the theory of TPD (Wells, 2017).ĭabowski identified 5 OEs: psychomotor – abundance of physical energy sensual – heightened responses of the senses and aesthetic appreciation imaginational – capacity for fantasy intellectual – curiosity and aliveness of the mind emotional – sensitivity, intensity, empathy. Overexcitability is a construct of a larger theory, and its deeper meanings can be understood within the context of Dabrowski’s TPD. It is the zing you experience when you are with certain people who seem to radiate excitement and the intensity you see in the eyes of the introspective seeker. OE is a greater neural capacity to respond to stimuli. The concept of OE was a gift from Kazimierz Dabrowski, a Polish psychiatrist and psychologist, as part of his Theory of Positive Disintegration (TPD). We have created, validated and distributed the primary instruments to assess OE. We have been studying overexcitability since 1980, shortly after the concept was introduced in gifted education. Gifted Development Center/Institute for the Study of Advanced Development (GDC/ISAD) is in a unique position to answer these questions. What is overexcitability (OE)? Is there empirical evidence that gifted children and adults have greater OE? Does OE portray gifted children as emotionally needy and peculiar? Why is the concept controversial? Can we distinguish OE from AD/HD, sensory processing disorder, and other issues? How should we respond to OEs?
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