Motivation and the Gifted Underachiever
There is nothing as frustrating as having a child who you know is very bright, yet does not perform.
Many studies have been done on underachieving gifted students, but it is still a little understood syndrome. There is no one reason for underachievement. It may be caused by
- a physical, cognitive, or emotional issue such as a learning disability, attention deficit, emotional disturbance, psychological disorder, or health impairment;
- a mismatch between the student and his school environment; and
- a personal characteristic such as low self-motivation, low self-regulation (the ability to monitor, evaluate, and react appropriately to one’s performance), or low self-efficacy (belief in one’s own capabilities).
So, what is a parent or teacher to do? Caution should be exercised when using the reward/punishment approach, which may encourage the constant need for extrinsic motivation.
Extrinsic motivation is when a person is motivated by external factors. Extrinsic motivation drives a person to do things for tangible rewards or pressures, rather than for the fun of it.
Intrinsic motivation on the other hand, is when a person is motivated by internal factors. Intrinsic motivation drives a person to do things just for the fun of it, or because she believes it is a good or right thing to do.
Intrinsic motivation is by far the most desirable as it is long lasting. I have known so many students who have spent their school career (K-12) motivated mainly by the rewards or punishments that adults imposed upon them only to fall apart once they are on their own. It is always most desirable to encourage hard work and learning for the love and self-satisfaction of it rather than for a short-term reward or punishment.
The next question is, what can be done if one does not use punishments and rewards. Because parents and teachers are always looking for concrete tips for helping gifted underachievers, you may want to check out some of these resources.
Handouts from a presentation titled,
Motivational Paralysis, by Anna Caveney help parents understand possible causes of underachievement and suggestions for breaking the cycle.
Drawing in the work of Joanne Whitmore and Sylvia Rimm, the author of
this site on intrinsic motivation synthesizes both philosophies and research to offer many strategies for enhancing motivation
- those who value school goals and display near-average motivation/self-regulation, but have negative attitudes toward teachers and school; and
- those who display positive attitudes toward teachers and school, but do not value school goals and have low motivation/self-regulation.
The authors recommend using specific comments about success (i.e., “You really know how to calculate area,” provides more information to a student than a general comment, such as, Good job.”)