Both giftedness and autism fall on a spectrum, so while there may be individuals who clearly fit into one box or another, some behaviors might be more ambiguous and require additional information, context, or professional opinions.
Quick Read. Some children are highly gifted in areas such as math, writing or music. Others have learning challenges like ADHD, dyslexia or dyscalculia, autism or sensory processing issues. But there are also kids who fit into both categories.
I want to emphasize that giftedness is one form of neurodiversity, and it is not exclusive. Many people have giftedness as one part of their neurodiversity experience, and they may also have other kinds of diagnoses, for example ADHD.
Giftedness is not always equivalent to high academic achievement, and isn't limited to race, ethnicity, gender, or affluence. Gifted kids do sometimes have learning or mental health disorders.
The Disorder
There is no doubt that a gifted child can have Asperger's Disorder and that this combination has a profound impact on both social interactions and schooling (Amend & Schuler, 2004; Cash, 1999; Neihart, 2000).
Because autism and giftedness exist separately, it's possible to have a gifted child with more pronounced autistic traits who may benefit from more support at home and at school. You can also have a fully verbal and self-sufficient autistic child with a typical IQ who isn't twice exceptional.
While giftedness and autism are two types of neurodivergent groups that are often confused, a child can absolutely be gifted and on the autism spectrum.
Gifted children are more prone to depression, self-harm, overexcitability, and learning deficits. A gifted student might be so paralyzed by her own perfectionism, say, that she refuses to hand in any assignments.
Gifted trauma stems from childhood issues with feeling like you don't belong anywhere because of your gift. Bullying, starving for mental stimulation, school mismatch, and other issues specific to the life experience of the gifted child may also contribute both to the main mental health issue and gift-specific trauma.
The 3% to 5% of kids who are particularly gifted are also at special risk for being tagged with an inappropriate diagnosis of mental disorder. Caution is necessary when diagnosing.
Exceptionally gifted people have an IQ of 160-179 and they are approximately 1 in 10,000 to 1 in 1 million people in the world. Profoundly gifted people are considered those individuals with an IQ of 180 or greater and these people are approximately 1 in 1 million.
The parents reported that gifted children have higher energy levels than their peers (29). The unique characteristics of giftedness may prone them to anxiety.
Gifted persons are more likely to make sense out of their intellectual experiences than the average person. Another important difference is in the desire to know complex ideas. Average persons have less desire to know ideas for their own sake.
"As many as one-third of gifted children may exhibit sensory processing disorder features, significantly impacting quality of life."
Although there are no standard IQ levels of intellectual giftedness, some experts suggest the following IQ ranges: Mildly gifted: 115 to 129. Moderately gifted: 130 to 144. ighly gifted: 145 to 159.
Giftedness can create problems and conflicts; being a gifted child can also mean difficulty socializing with age peers, thinking styles that don't always mesh well with the demands from the environment, even children who see themselves as little adults, challenging teachers and parents.
While other forms of burnout might be tied to the workplace, or the emotional labor involved in care-taker roles, gifted child burnout is often tied to an educational system that the child finds repetitive, unrewarding, without autonomy, unfair, or not aligned with their values.
Most people use terms like “bright,” “gifted,” “exceptional,” “remarkable,” and “talented” interchangeably, but when a psychologist uses the term “gifted,” we're usually talking about something that is statistically quite rare. About 3 to 5 out of every 100 children could be considered gifted.
Research reflects that giftedness does “run in families”: for a gifted child, their genetically-related relatives — siblings and/or parents — are likely to also be gifted, though there are plenty of exceptions.
Although gifted children generally do well, they may show behaviors that mimic ADHD. For example, they may appear hyperactive because they ask many questions and are so excited about learning. Or, they may fail to participate in age-expected activities because of their over-focus on an area of interest.
While many experts agree that these children do exist, there is currently no formal criteria to identify giftedness in children who are ADHD or to identify ADHD in children who are gifted.
Essentially, giftedness is a neurodiversity with a social-emotional and learning difference. It is highly genetic, meaning that while early experiences are influential, gifted people are essentially just born the way they are.
Studies show that gifted children have a higher risk of experiencing mental health issues, like anxiety, depression, and even suicidal thoughts. Because gifted children have different capabilities than their peers, other children may find them intimidating.