Abstract

Objectives: The present study aims to compare attributional styles and mental health of gifted vs. normal students. It also investigates the existing relationships between these variables.

Method: In this post hoc descriptive survey, 60 gifted students (30 boys and 30 girls selected by a random sampling method) and 60 normal students (30 boys and 30 girls selected by a cluster sampling method) were enrolled. Raven’s Progressive Matrices Test, Attributional Style Questionnaire (ASQ), and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) were used for data collection. Analysis of the data was carried out using regression, one-way and multivariate analysis of variance, and t-test.

Results: It was found that internal-external attributional style in gifted male students can predict status of mental health. There were significant differences between the two boys and girls student groups in the internal–external and global-specific attributional styles of unfavorable events. A significant difference was also noted between the two groups of gifted and normal students in the global-specific attributional style of unfavorable events. Assessment of mental health, too, disclosed a significant difference between the two normal and gifted student groups in the social dysfunctioning feature.

Conclusion:  Gifted students had a global attributional style and female students had an external and specific attributional style in failure situations. Gifted students were also found to suffer more from social dysfunctioning than the normal students.