Giftedness and the Overexcitability Rabbit-Hole Trap

Giftedness and Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration (TPD) have been firmly linked since the Columbus Group's 1991 statement on giftedness and asynchrony. The theory's overexcitabilities (OEs) factor has been the main association with giftedness. Although OEs include certain characteristics associated with giftedness, they also include negative aspects not found in research on gifted characteristics. Instead, those negative aspects May be signs of learning and other disorders, or of mental health issues. Because positive aspects of OEs have been shown to fit within the five-factor model of personality, and because the negative aspects May be signs of neurodiversity, I argue that the OE association with giftedness May be superfluous or even misleading. Three parents of gifted children are cited, revealing the consequences of receiving information about OEs with their children's assessment reports as the only guide for possible future problems. I offer suggestions, including replacing OE lists with research-based gifted characteristics.