Educators' Implicit Theories of Intelligence and Beliefs about the Identification of Gifted Students

Abstract

This research study analyzed the structure of educators’ implicit theoriesof intelligence (ITI) and explored the relationship between ITI and beliefsabout the identification of gifted students. This study included a sampleof 372 educators. School Teachers and professors from colleges of educationfavor practical, analytical, and creative attributes in their prototypesof an intelligence person. However, participants were fairly neutral aboutwhether interpersonal and intrapersonal attributes characterized intelligentpeople. Educators that rated creativity as an important attribute ofintelligence tend to favor multiple methods to identify gifted students. Incontrast, educators who supported the use of IQ test as the primary basisof gifted identification tended to agree that analytical abilities were part ofthe structure of intelligence.