Gifted Underachievement Redefined and Reconceptualized

Gifted underachievement indicates a gap between what one is expected to achieve given demonstrated gifted potential and what is actually attained in school. Gifted underachievement has long been defined as an ability-achievement gap calculated by test scores and GPA. With a current understanding of human potential not as a fixed capacity but as growing with experience and learning, this article presents a new conceptualization, situating possible underachievement in context, wherein the dynamics of person × task × situation interaction determine the outcome. Consequently, the authors propose a diagnosis-intervention approach to find out what exactly transpires in situ, resulting in a typology of underachievement that can differentiate multiple types of underachievement and facilitate targeted interventions. The effort to revamp the notion of gifted underachievement is guided by a new paradigm of talent development to make gifted education scientifically more compelling, socially more equitable, and educationally more productive.