Giftedness: A Relational Approach

Youth with gifts and talents (GAT) are a unique subset of the adolescent population that has been shown to face a variety of challenges in development, including social-emotional learning and the presentation of mental health symptomology. These challenges impact GAT individuals, their caregivers, and family systems, resulting in feelings of isolation and frustration. As marriage and family therapists are trained to address treatment from a systemic lens, addressing impacts within entire families instead of within one primary individual, they are prepared to address the unique holistic needs of these families. This manuscript seeks to provide four practical strategies for working with gifted adolescents and their family members that can be utilized by an array of family practitioners regardless of their primary theoretical orientation.