A Longitudinal Study of the Dynamics of Giftedness

Introduction. The paper presents a longitudinal study nearly a half-century long of the dynamics of giftedness from adolescence to maturity. Giftedness is an individual's ability for creativity. The current study postulates that personal creative achievements can be predicted and that individuals' ability to develop activities on their own initiative is the unit of such analysis of creativity. The concept of creativity is revealed through this ability as its mechanism. The ultimate forms of creativity are actions that lose the form of response. Methods. For the purpose of the study, the authors developed a Creative Field technique. This diagnostic tool has certain advantages over other existing tests, as it also measures intelligence according to the learnability criteria. The study was originated in 1970 with a sample comprised of 60 10th grade students of physico-mathematical school № 2 in Moscow. The second stage of the experiment took place in 1976. It employed the new Creative Field technique developed with the use of mathematical content. The third stage of the experiment was conducted during 2002–2003, at which point in time the sample was somewhat reduced due to inaccessibility of a portion of the original participants. The fourth stage of the study of the genesis of giftedness is currently underway (2018-2019). Results and Discussion. The study produced reliable measures of giftedness in adolescence and maturity and analyzed achievements in participants' professional activities. These results create an objective framework for analyzing the role of the major life events and personality structure in the realization, and either development or regression of giftedness. The results of the experiments confirmed the relevance of the technique and the validity of the method itself. Students, who reached the highest levels of cognition in the experiment, also made significant discoveries in their professional activities. Conclusion. The main conclusions are as follows: (a) The method of Creative Field has predictive value. (b) The theory developed by authors is productive.