Full Title: Bright Star — Black Sky: A Phenomenological Study of Depression as a Window Into the Psyche of the Gifted Adolescent.
“Few maladies touch so many aspects of the self as depression. Informed discussions of this ancient and pervasive human affliction must range freely from the faint rattlings of molecules in the brain, through the fleeting thoughts and emotions that compromise mind, to the unfathomable mysteries of spirit-the subtle essence of consciousness itself” (Nelson, J.E. and A. Nelson, 1996)
This article presents the results of a comprehensive study of the depressive experience of the gifted adolescent. One out of ten high school students experiences some form of severe depression during the high school years. Depression has been causally related to about 60% of suicides.
The higher incidence of depressive experience for gifted teens has been documented. The gifted adolescent prefers complexity, is often intense and has the capacity to consider many contradictory ideas at one time. Lacking an appropriate audience, these complex emotional and intellectual constructs often remain internalized resulting in the gifted adolescent being at risk for isolation and despair.
METHODOLOGY
Definition of Terms
Giftedness is assynchronous development in which advanced cognitive abilities and heightened intensity combine to create inner experiences that are qualitatively different from the norm.
The depressive state describes a syndrome or cluster of disorders wherein the mood state is typified by a profound mood of sadness, sense of inadequacy, despondency, decreased activity and reactivity, and related symptoms.
Recruitment and Characteristics of Co-researchers
Gifted adolescents aged 16–19 participated. They were members of gifted programs, self-referred as having experienced depressive states, and screened for emotional intensity while excluding coexisting conditions that would significantly alter retrospective reporting.
Overview of the Phenomenological Research Approach
The methodology involved description, reduction (bracketing presuppositions), and the search for essences. Data collection emphasized fidelity to the phenomenon and allowed co-researchers to tell their stories without imposing explanatory models.
Data Sources and Collection
Each of the ten co-researchers participated in two 60–90 minute interviews. Protocols were read, meaning units were discriminated and paraphrased, thematic clusters formed, and general structures derived to identify invariant and manifest constituents of the depressive experience.
Phenomenological Research Results
Three phases emerged: precursors and beginnings of the depressive state, the depressive experience itself, and the perceived impact or meaning of the experience. Two central concepts—emotion and affect—were identified as core constituents woven through all protocols. Emotion was characterized etymologically as a disturbance or stirring of mind; affect as the capacity to act upon or influence.
At the core of the gifted adolescent psyche is a need to affect the world: to influence, to make a meaningful impression, to express and contribute. When capacity to affect is thwarted, the depressive mechanism often involves a gradual shutting down of that capacity.
The Depressed State of the Gifted Adolescent: Characteristics and Related Needs
Key characteristics identified include:
1. Stymied capacity to manifest perceptions and experience
2. Disturbances in the capacity to affect
3. Extreme experiencing of either the presence or absence of movement and feeling, often with concomitant immobility
These characteristics relate to manifest needs: understanding and knowledge, communion, and expression.
Tripartite Needs System (TNS) of the Gifted Adolescent
The TNS comprises three invariant elements facilitating positive emotion and capacity to affect:
For Knowledge: the need to understand self, physical and spiritual phenomena, and to be understood by others.
For Communion: the ability to exchange thoughts and emotions in authentic, mutually affirming relationships.
For Expression: means to manifest emotion through words, art, music, or other nonverbal modes.
When these constituents are absent or inadequate the gifted adolescent is at higher risk for depressive experience. Recovery and transcendence commonly involve re-formulated understanding, communion, and expressive modes.
Discussion
This study situates emotion and affect, and the Tripartite Needs System of knowledge, communion and expression, as central to understanding depression among gifted adolescents. Findings emphasize the importance of parental and peer communion, safe expressive outlets, mentoring, and educational programming that addresses both cognitive and affective needs.
Successful resolution of depressive experience may lead to greater integration and self-awareness; without TNS components the gifted adolescent may not emerge from deep depressive states.
BIBLIOGRAPHY (selected)
References include Brown (1993), The Columbus Group (1991), Dabrowski (1972), Delisle (1986, 1990), Gallagher (1990), Giorgi (1992, 1994), Hillman (1975), Jung (1960), Silverman (1993), and others.
