Introduction:
Internet use has witnessed unstoppable growth in recent years, and adolescents are the ones who spend more time online than adults. They primarily use it to maintain their existing network of friends (Valkenburg & Peter, 2007). Moreover, we kwon that in forming and maintaining friendships, adolescents develop expectations about how friends ought to be and ought to behave (Hall, 2012). Friend expectations are also a strong predictor of friendship satisfaction.
There have been a lot of scientific studies on the social development in gifted children, but none have studied the way they use the Internet in relation with their friendly expectations.
Some research on social adjustment and development of highly gifted children suggests that the more highly gifted the child the more likely there will be lower social and emotional adjustment. For example, highly gifted children may be at a higher level of development in the understanding in relationships and are then out of sync with age peers. (Lovecky, 1995). But in the literature on gifted children, the relative importance of social adjustment has been subject to considerable discussion.
Objectives:
The main objective of this study was to examine the effect of friendly expectations on the social networking activity intensity in gifted adolescents using questionnaires self-assessment. Based on the results of some studies showing that teenagers increasingly use the Internet, and that electronic messaging would now outperform direct communication and that through online social network young people would first seek socialization, we might consider that gifted adolescents would present difficulties of social adjustment.
Method:
A total of 579 students were recruited from two middle schools in France (Nantes and Amiens). The participants completed two questionnaires. One measuring friendly expectations and the other measuring Social Networking Activity Intensity (SNAIS).
Results:
The results showed differences between gifted and non-gifted adolescents on the total score of the social networking activity intensity. The mean total score for non-gifted group is higher than gifted adolescents [F (2,576)= 13.80, p< .001]. The same observation holds for the friendly expectations [F(14,1140)= 3.76, p< .001].
In addition, for gifted adolescents, social networking activity is positively linked to one dimension of friendly expectations: agency. Expectations of agency in friendship pertain to what a friend can do, has access to, and is able to offer to his/her friends (Hall, 2012). For Abele and Wojciszke (2007), agency involves such qualities like instrumentality, ambition, dominance, competence, and efficiency in goal attainment.
Conclusion:
The present study was designed to determine the effect of friendly expectations on the social networking activity intensity in gifted adolescents and its possible links to manifest social adjustment.
This study has shown that thesocial networking activity intensityin gifted adolescents had contradictions in their friendly expectations. Taken together, these contradictions suggest that gifted adolescents present a greater sense of isolation and desire for social adaptation than typical adolescents.
In addition, this study has been one of the first attempts to thoroughly examine the effect of friendly expectations on the social networking activity intensity particularly among young people whose singularity is based on exceptional cognitive abilities. To date, the peer’s acceptance now passes through the online communication, the pressure they feel could be detrimental to their social and emotional well-being.
Useful words :
Unstoppable: inarrêtable
Friendly expectations: attentes amicales
The social networking activity intensity: l’intensité d’utilisation des reseaux sociaux en ligne
Social adjustment: adaptation sociale
References:
Abele, A. E., & Wojciszke, B. (2007). Agency and communion from the perspective of self versus others. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 93(5), 751‑763. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.93.5.751
Hall, J. A. (2012). Friendship standards : The dimensions of ideal expectations. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 29(7), 884‑907. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407512448274
Lovecky, D. (1995). Highly gifted children and peer relationships.Counseling and Guidance Newsletter, 5(3), 2.
Valkenburg, P. M., & Peter, J. (2007). Preadolescents’ and adolescents’ online communication and their closeness to friends. Developmental Psychology, 43(2), 267‑277. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.43.2.267