Date of Award

1992

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Psychology

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Jerry Cohen

Abstract

This project investigated the multidimensional self-concepts of gifted and regular education fifth grade children. Potential differences in the ratings of Global, Physical, Social and Academic self-concept domains were investigated. Ratings of the importance of the specific domains were also examined. Participants consisted of 37 integrated gifted and 251 regular education classmates enrolled m the fifth grade of a suburban school district. Participants completed four self-report measures: a variation of Kuhn and McPartland's "Who Am I?" task, an "Importance Scale" which examined the perceived importance of three self-concept domains, Marsh's (1981) Self-Description Questionnaire, and a "Pie Chart" of the relative perceived importance of the three self-concept areas. Academic grouping and sex differences in the rating and importance of the self-concept domains were examined. Results indicated significant differences in the participants' ratings of their global and domain-specific self-concepts and the importance of the specific domains. In accordance with previous research, gifted participants demonstrated Academic self-concepts that were significantly higher than those of the regular education sample. Significant differences were also found in the perceived importance of the domains for the gifted and regular education samples. Significant sex differences in the direction of traditional gender roles were found on all instruments. Results are discussed in terms of the influence of various socialization factors.

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