Gifted children: What and how to care?

Abstract

Gifted children may have a greater risk of experiencing mental health and socio-behavioural issues than the general child population. The present study investigates the protective and risk factors for the mental health and sleep patterns of gifted children and aims to determine if Meaning Mindset (MM), Mental Wellbeing (MWB), Sleep Patterns, Social Support, and Strengths and Challenges among gifted children are interrelated. Participants (N=17, 12 boys, 5 girls, Mage = 11.50 years, SD = 3.78 years) are gifted children (IQ ≥130) recruited through 25 Facebook pages for parents of gifted children across Canada, Association for Bright Children branches across Ontario, and an association for Gifted Education. Primary caregivers provided ratings of child sleep patterns and disruptions using a sleep log and descriptions of their children’s Gifted Strengths and Challenges (GSC). Demographic questions were also asked. Gifted children provided ratings of their MM and their MWB. Results from this study indicated that children’s IQ scores were significantly inversely associated with MM, positively associated with frequency of nighttime awakenings and with GSC, but, notably, do not suggest any significant relationships with total sleep duration and MWB. Further, GSC was inversely associated with MWB and MM, as well as positively associated with IQ score and night awakenings. Notably, the findings from this study also highlight the moderating role of GSC not only in the relationship between child sleep duration and MM but also in the relationship between total sleep duration and child-reported MWB. Additionally, a mediation analysis revealed the mediating role of MM in the relationship between GSC and MWB. These results provide valuable insights into both the protective and risk factors that could potentially influence the well-being of gifted children.