How to Raise a Genius: Lessons from a 45-Year Study of ...

“The kids who test in the top 1% tend to become our eminent scientists and academics, our Fortune 500 CEOs and federal judges, senators and ... SkiptomaincontentSave20%onallsubscriptionsSubscribeSave20%onallsubscriptionsSubscribeShareonFacebookShareonTwitterShareonRedditShareonLinkedInShareviaEmailPrintForillustrationpurposesonly.Credit:GETTYAdvertisement Onasummerdayin1968,professorJulianStanleymetabrilliantbutbored12-year-oldnamedJosephBates.TheBaltimorestudentwassofaraheadofhisclassmatesinmathematicsthathisparentshadarrangedforhimtotakeacomputer-sciencecourseatJohnsHopkinsUniversity,whereStanleytaught.Eventhatwasn'tenough.Havingleapfroggedaheadoftheadultsintheclass,thechildkepthimselfbusybyteachingtheFORTRANprogramminglanguagetograduatestudents. UnsureofwhattodowithBates,hiscomputerinstructorintroducedhimtoStanley,aresearcherwellknownforhisworkinpsychometrics—thestudyofcognitiveperformance.Todiscovermoreabouttheyoungprodigy'stalent,StanleygaveBatesabatteryofteststhatincludedtheSATcollege-admissionsexam,normallytakenbyuniversity-bound16-to18-year-oldsintheUnitedStates. Bates'sscorewaswellabovethethresholdforadmissiontoJohnsHopkins,andpromptedStanleytosearchforalocalhighschoolthatwouldletthechildtakeadvancedmathematicsandscienceclasses.Whenthatplanfailed,StanleyconvincedadeanatJohnsHopkinstoletBates,then13,enrolasanundergraduate. StanleywouldaffectionatelyrefertoBatesas“studentzero”ofhis StudyofMathematicallyPrecociousYouth(SMPY),whichwouldtransformhowgiftedchildrenareidentifiedandsupportedbytheUSeducationsystem.Asthelongest-runningcurrentlongitudinalsurveyofintellectuallytalentedchildren,SMPYhasfor45yearstrackedthecareersandaccomplishmentsofsome5,000individuals,manyofwhomhavegoneontobecomehigh-achievingscientists.Thestudy'sever-growingdatasethasgeneratedmorethan400papersandseveralbooks,andprovidedkeyinsightsintohowtospotanddeveloptalentinscience,technology,engineering,mathematics(STEM)andbeyond. “WhatJulianwantedtoknowwas,howdoyoufindthekidswiththehighestpotentialforexcellenceinwhatwenowcallSTEM,andhowdoyouboostthechancethatthey'llreachthatpotential,”saysCamillaBenbow,aprotégéofStanley'swhoisnowdeanofeducationandhumandevelopmentatVanderbiltUniversityinNashville,Tennessee.ButStanleywasn'tinterestedinjuststudyingbrightchildren;hewantedtonurturetheirintellectandenhancetheoddsthattheywouldchangetheworld.Hismotto,hetoldhisgraduatestudents,was“nomoredrybonesmethodology”. WiththefirstSMPYrecruitsnowatthepeakoftheircareers,whathasbecomeclearishowmuchtheprecociouslygiftedoutweightherestofsocietyintheirinfluence.Manyoftheinnovatorswhoareadvancingscience,technologyandculturearethosewhoseuniquecognitiveabilitieswereidentifiedandsupportedintheirearlyyearsthroughenrichmentprogrammessuchasJohnsHopkinsUniversity's CenterforTalentedYouth—whichStanleybeganinthe1980sasanadjuncttoSMPY.Atthestart,boththestudyandthecentrewereopentoyoungadolescentswhoscoredinthetop1%onuniversityentranceexams.PioneeringmathematiciansTerenceTao andLenhardNgwereone-percenters,aswereFacebook'sMarkZuckerberg,Googleco-founderSergeyBrinandmusicianStefaniGermanotta(LadyGaga),whoallpassedthroughtheHopkinscentre.   Nature,September7,2016,doi:10.1038/537152a; Source:K.FerrimanRobertsonetal.Curr.Dir.Psychol.Sci.19,346–351(2010). “Whetherwelikeitornot,thesepeoplereallydocontroloursociety,”saysJonathanWai,apsychologistattheDukeUniversityTalentIdentificationPrograminDurham,NorthCarolina,whichcollaborateswiththeHopkinscentre.Waicombineddatafrom11prospectiveandretrospectivelongitudinalstudies,includingSMPY,todemonstratethecorrelationbetweenearlycognitiveabilityandadultachievement.“Thekidswhotestinthetop1%tendtobecomeoureminentscientistsandacademics,ourFortune500CEOsandfederaljudges,senatorsandbillionaires,”hesays. Suchresultscontradictlong-establishedideassuggestingthatexpertperformanceisbuiltmainlythroughpractice—thatanyonecangettothetopwithenoughfocusedeffortoftherightkind.SMPY,bycontrast,suggeststhatearlycognitiveabilityhasmoreeffectonachievementthaneitherdeliberatepracticeorenvironmentalfactorssuchassocio-economicstatus.Theresearchemphasizestheimportanceofnurturingprecociouschildren,atatimewhentheprevailingfocusintheUnitedStatesandothercountriesisonimprovingtheperformanceofstrugglingstudents.Atthesametime,theworktoidentifyandsupportacademicallytalentedstudentshasraisedtroublingquestionsabouttherisksoflabellingchildren,andtheshortfallsoftalentsearchesandstandardizedtestsasameansofidentifyinghigh-potentialstudents,especiallyinpoorandruraldistricts. “Withsomuchemphasisonpredictingwhowillrisetothetop,weruntheriskofsellingshortthemanykidswhoaremissedbythesetests,”saysDonaMatthews,adevelopmentalpsychologistinToronto,Canada,whoco-foundedtheCenterforGiftedStudiesandEducationatHunterCollegeinNewYorkCity.“Forthosechildrenwhoaretested,itdoesthemnofavourstocallthem'gifted'or'ungifted'.Eitherway,itcanreallyundermineachild'smotivationtolearn.” Startofastudy OnamuggyAugustday,Benbowandherhusband,psychologistDavidLubinski,describetheoriginsofSMPYastheywalkacrossthequadrangleatVanderbiltUniversity.BenbowwasagraduatestudentatJohnsHopkinswhenshemetStanleyinaclasshetaughtin1976.BenbowandLubinski,whohaveco-directedthestudysinceStanley'sretirement,broughtittoVanderbiltin1998. “Inasense,thatbroughtJulian'sresearchfullcircle,sincethisiswherehestartedhiscareerasaprofessor,”Benbowsaysasshenearstheuniversity'spsychologylaboratory,thefirstUSbuildingdedicatedtothestudyofthefield.Builtin1915,ithousesasmallcollectionofantiquecalculators—thetoolsofquantitativepsychologyintheearly1950s,whenStanleybeganhisacademicworkinpsychometricsandstatistics. Hisinterestindevelopingscientifictalenthadbeenpiquedbyoneofthemostfamouslongitudinalstudiesinpsychology, LewisTerman'sGeneticStudiesofGenius.Beginningin1921,TermanselectedteenagesubjectsonthebasisofhighIQscores,thentrackedandencouragedtheircareers.ButtoTerman'schagrin,hiscohortproducedonlyafewesteemedscientists.AmongthoserejectedbecausetheirIQof129wastoolowtomakethecutwasWilliamShockley,theNobel-prizewinningco-inventorofthetransistor.PhysicistLuisAlvarez,anotherNobelwinner,wasalsorejected. StanleysuspectedthatTermanwouldn'thavemissedShockleyandAlvarezifhe'dhadareliablewaytotestthemspecificallyonquantitativereasoningability.SoStanleydecidedtotrytheScholasticAptitudeTest(nowsimplytheSAT).Althoughthetestisintendedforolderstudents,Stanleyhypothesizedthatitwouldbewellsuitedtomeasuringtheanalyticalreasoningabilitiesofeliteyoungerstudents. InMarch1972,Stanleyroundedup450bright12-to14-year-oldsfromtheBaltimoreareaandgavethemthemathematicsportionoftheSAT.Itwasthefirststandardizedacademic'talentsearch'.(Later,researchersincludedtheverbalportionandotherassessments.) “Thefirstbigsurprisewashowmanyadolescentscouldfigureoutmathproblemsthattheyhadn'tencounteredintheircoursework,”saysdevelopmentalpsychologistDanielKeating,thenaPhDstudentatJohnsHopkinsUniversity.“Thesecondsurprisewashowmanyoftheseyoungkidsscoredwellabovetheadmissionscut-offformanyeliteuniversities.” Stanleyhadn'tenvisionedSMPYasamulti-decadelongitudinalstudy.Butafterthefirstfollow-upsurvey,fiveyearslater,Benbowproposedextendingthestudytotracksubjectsthroughtheirlives,addingcohortsandincludingassessmentsofinterests,preferences,andoccupationalandotherlifeaccomplishments.Thestudy'sfirstfourcohortsrangefromthetop3%tothetop0.01%intheirSATscores.TheSMPYteamaddedafifthcohortoftheleadingmathematicsandsciencegraduatestudentsin1992totestthegeneralizabilityofthetalent-searchmodelforidentifyingscientificpotential. “Idon'tknowofanyotherstudyintheworldthathasgivenussuchacomprehensivelookatexactlyhowandwhySTEMtalentdevelops,”saysChristophPerleth,apsychologistattheUniversityofRostockinGermanywhostudiesintelligenceandtalentdevelopment. Spatialskills Asthedataflowedin,itquicklybecameapparentthataone-size-fits-allapproachtogiftededucation,andeducationingeneral,wasinadequate. “SMPYgaveusthefirstlarge-samplebasisforthefieldtomoveawayfromgeneralintelligencetowardassessmentsofspecificcognitiveabilities,interestsandotherfactors,”saysRenaSubotnik,whodirectstheCenterforGiftedEducationPolicyattheAmericanPsychologicalAssociationinWashingtonDC. In1976,Stanleystartedtotesthissecondcohort(asampleof56313-year-oldswhoscoredinthetop0.5%ontheSAT)onspatialability—thecapacitytounderstandandrememberspatialrelationshipsbetweenobjects.Testsforspatialabilitymightincludematchingobjectsthatareseenfromdifferentperspectives,determiningwhichcross-sectionwillresultwhenanobjectiscutincertainways,orestimatingwaterlevelsontiltedbottlesofvariousshapes.Stanleywascuriousaboutwhetherspatialabilitymightbetterpredicteducationalandoccupationaloutcomesthancouldmeasuresofquantitativeandverbalreasoningontheirown. Follow-upsurveys—atages18,23,33and48—backeduphishunch.A2013analysis foundacorrelationbetweenthenumberofpatentsandpeer-refereedpublicationsthatpeoplehadproducedandtheirearlierscoresonSATsandspatial-abilitytests.TheSATtestsjointlyaccountedforabout11%ofthevariance;spatialabilityaccountedforanadditional7.6%. Thefindings,whichdovetailwiththoseofotherrecentstudies,suggestthatspatialabilityplaysamajorpartincreativityandtechnicalinnovation.“Ithinkitmaybethelargestknownuntappedsourceofhumanpotential,”saysLubinski,whoaddsthatstudentswhoareonlymarginallyimpressiveinmathematicsorverbalabilitybuthighinspatialabilityoftenmakeexceptionalengineers,architectsandsurgeons.“Andyet,noadmissionsdirectorsIknowofarelookingatthis,andit'sgenerallyoverlookedinschool-basedassessments.” AlthoughstudiessuchasSMPYhavegiveneducatorstheabilitytoidentifyandsupportgiftedyoungsters,worldwideinterestinthispopulationisuneven.IntheMiddleEastandeastAsia,high-performingSTEMstudentshavereceivedsignificantattentionoverthepastdecade.SouthKorea,HongKongandSingaporescreenchildrenforgiftednessandsteerhighperformersintoinnovativeprogrammes.In2010,Chinalaunchedaten-yearNationalTalentDevelopmentPlantosupportandguidetopstudentsintoscience,technologyandotherhigh-demandfields. InEurope,supportforresearchandeducationalprogrammesforgiftedchildrenhasebbed,asthefocushasmovedmoretowardsinclusion.Englanddecidedin2010toscraptheNationalAcademyforGiftedandTalentedYouth,andredirectedfundstowardsanefforttogetmorepoorstudentsintoleadinguniversities. Onthefasttrack WhenStanleybeganhiswork,thechoicesforbrightchildrenintheUnitedStateswerelimited,sohesoughtoutenvironmentsinwhichearlytalentcouldblossom.“ItwascleartoJulianthatit'snotenoughtoidentifypotential;ithastobedevelopedinappropriatewaysifyou'regoingtokeepthatflamewelllit,”saysLindaBrody,whostudiedwithStanleyandnowrunsaprogrammeatJohnsHopkinsfocusedoncounsellingprofoundlygiftedchildren. Atfirst,theeffortswereonacase-by-casebasis.ParentsofotherbrightchildrenbegantoapproachStanleyafterhearingabouthisworkwithBates,whothrivedafterenteringuniversity.By17,hehadearnedbachelor'sandmaster'sdegreesincomputerscienceandwaspursuingadoctorateatCornellUniversityinIthaca,NewYork.Later,asaprofessoratCarnegieMellonUniversityinPittsburgh,Pennsylvania,hewouldbecomeapioneerinartificialintelligence. “Iwasshyandthesocialpressuresofhighschoolwouldn'thavemadeitagoodfitforme,”saysBates,now60.“Butatcollege,withtheotherscienceandmathnerds,Ifitrightin,eventhoughIwasmuchyounger.Icouldgrowuponthesocialsideatmyownrateandalsoontheintellectualside,becausethefasterpacekeptmeinterestedinthecontent.” TheSMPYdatasupportedtheideaofacceleratingfastlearnersbyallowingthemtoskipschoolgrades.Inacomparisonofchildrenwhobypassedagradewithacontrolgroupofsimilarlysmartchildrenwhodidn't,thegrade-skipperswere60%morelikelytoearndoctoratesorpatentsandmorethantwiceaslikelytogetaPhDinaSTEMfield.AccelerationiscommoninSMPY'selite1-in-10,000cohort,whoseintellectualdiversityandrapidpaceoflearningmakethemamongthemostchallengingtoeducate.Advancingthesestudentscostslittleornothing,andinsomecasesmaysaveschoolsmoney,saysLubinski.“Thesekidsoftendon'tneedanythinginnovativeornovel,”hesays,“theyjustneedearlieraccesstowhat'salreadyavailabletoolderkids.” Manyeducatorsandparentscontinuetobelievethataccelerationisbadforchildren—thatitwillhurtthemsocially,pushthemoutofchildhoodorcreateknowledgegaps.Buteducationresearchersgenerallyagreethataccelerationbenefitsthevastmajorityofgiftedchildrensociallyandemotionally,aswellasacademicallyandprofessionally. Skippinggradesisnottheonlyoption.SMPYresearcherssaythatevenmodestinterventions—forexample,accesstochallengingmaterialsuchascollege-levelAdvancedPlacementcourses—haveademonstrableeffect.Amongstudentswithhighability,thosewhoweregivenaricherdensityofadvancedprecollegiateeducationalopportunitiesinSTEMwentontopublishmoreacademicpapers,earnmorepatentsandpursuehigher-levelcareersthantheirequallysmartpeerswhodidn'thavetheseopportunities. DespiteSMPY'smanyinsights,researchersstillhaveanincompletepictureofgiftednessandachievement.“Wedon'tknowwhy,evenatthehighend,somepeoplewilldowellandotherswon't,”saysDouglasDetterman,apsychologistwhostudiescognitiveabilityatCaseWesternReserveUniversityinCleveland,Ohio.“Intelligencewon'taccountforallthedifferencesbetweenpeople;motivation,personalityfactors,howhardyouworkandotherthingsareimportant.” SomeinsightshavecomefromGermanstudies thathaveamethodologysimilartoSMPY's.TheMunichLongitudinalStudyofGiftedness,whichstartedtracking26,000giftedstudentsinthemid-1980s,foundthatcognitivefactorswerethemostpredictive,butthatsomepersonaltraits—suchasmotivation,curiosityandabilitytocopewithstress—hadalimitedinfluenceonperformance.Environmentalfactors,suchasfamily,schoolandpeers,alsohadanimpact. Thedatafromsuchintellectual-talentsearchesalsocontributetoknowledgeofhowpeopledevelopexpertiseinsubjects.Someresearchersandwriters,notablypsychologistAndersEricssonatFloridaStateUniversityinTallahasseeandauthorMalcolmGladwell,havepopularizedtheideaofanabilitythreshold.ThisholdsthatforindividualsbeyondacertainIQbarrier(120isoftencited),concentratedpracticetimeismuchmoreimportantthanadditionalintellectualabilitiesinacquiringexpertise.ButdatafromSMPYandtheDuketalentprogrammedisputethathypothesis.Astudypublishedthisyear comparedtheoutcomesofstudentsinthetop1%ofchildhoodintellectualabilitywiththoseinthetop0.01%.Whereasthefirstgroupgainadvanceddegreesatabout25timestherateofthegeneralpopulation,themoreelitestudentsearnPhDsatabout50timesthebaserate. Butsomeoftheworkiscontroversial.InNorthAmericaandEurope,somechild-developmentexpertslamentthatmuchoftheresearchontalentdevelopmentisdrivenbytheurgetopredictwhowillrisetothetop,andeducatorshaveexpressedconsiderableuneaseabouttheconceptofidentifyingandlabellingagroupofpupilsasgiftedortalented. “Ahightestscoretellsyouonlythatapersonhashighabilityandisagoodmatchforthatparticulartestatthatpointintime,”saysMatthews.“Alowtestscoretellsyoupracticallynothing,”shesays,becausemanyfactorscandepressstudents'performance,includingtheirculturalbackgroundsandhowcomfortabletheyarewithtakinghigh-stakestests.Matthewscontendsthatwhenchildrenwhoarenearthehighandlowextremesofearlyachievementfeelassessedintermsoffuturesuccess,itcandamagetheirmotivationtolearnandcancontributetowhatStanfordUniversitypsychologistCarolDweckcallsafixedmindset.It'sfarbetter,Dwecksays,toencourageagrowthmindset,inwhichchildrenbelievethatbrainsandtalentaremerelyastartingpoint,andthatabilitiescanbedevelopedthroughhardworkandcontinuedintellectualrisk-taking. “Studentsfocusonimprovementinsteadofworryingabouthowsmarttheyareandhungeringforapproval,”saysDweck.“Theyworkhardtolearnmoreandgetsmarter.”ResearchbyDweckandhercolleaguesshowsthatstudentswholearnwiththismindsetshowgreatermotivationatschool,getbettermarksandhavehighertestscores. Benbowagreesthatstandardizedtestsshouldnotbeusedtolimitstudents'options,butrathertodeveloplearningandteachingstrategiesappropriatetochildren'sabilities,whichallowstudentsateveryleveltoreachtheirpotential. Nextyear,BenbowandLubinskiplantolaunchamid-lifesurveyoftheprofoundlygiftedcohort(the1in10,000),withanemphasisoncareerachievementsandlifesatisfaction,andtore-surveytheir1992sampleofgraduatestudentsatleadingUSuniversities.Theforthcomingstudiesmayfurthererodetheenduringmisperceptionthatgiftedchildrenarebrightenoughtosucceedontheirown,withoutmuchhelp. “Theeducationcommunityisstillresistanttothismessage,”saysDavidGeary,acognitivedevelopmentalpsychologistattheUniversityofMissouriinColumbia,whospecializesinmathematicallearning.“There'sageneralbeliefthatkidswhohaveadvantages,cognitiveorotherwise,shouldn'tbegivenextraencouragement;thatweshouldfocusmoreonlower-performingkids.” Althoughgifted-educationspecialistsheraldtheexpansionoftalent-developmentoptionsintheUnitedStates,thebenefitshavemostlybeenlimitedsofartostudentswhoareatthetopofboththetalentandsocio-economiccurves. “Weknowhowtoidentifythesekids,andweknowhowtohelpthem,”saysLubinski.“Andyetwe'remissingalotofthesmartestkidsinthecountry.” AsLubinskiandBenbowwalkthroughthequadrangle,theclockstrikesnoon,releasingpacksofenthusiasticadolescentsracingtowardsthedininghall.ManyareparticipantsintheVanderbiltProgramsforTalentedYouth,summerenrichmentcoursesinwhichgiftedstudentsspendthreeweeksgorgingthemselvesonayear'sworthofmathematics,scienceorliterature.OthersareparticipantsinVanderbilt'ssportscamps. “They'rejustdevelopingdifferenttalents,”saysLubinski,aformerhigh-schoolandcollegewrestler.“Butoursocietyhasbeenmuchmoreencouragingofathletictalentsthanweareofintellectualtalents.” Andyetthesegiftedstudents,the'mathletes'oftheworld,canshapethefuture.“Whenyoulookattheissuesfacingsocietynow—whetherit'shealthcare,climatechange,terrorism,energy—thesearethekidswhohavethemostpotentialtosolvetheseproblems,”saysLubinski.“Thesearethekidswe'ddowelltobeton.” Thisarticleisreproducedwithpermissionandwas firstpublished onSeptember7,2016. ABOUTTHEAUTHOR(S)TomClynesisanauthorandphotojournalistwhoseworkhasappearedinNationalGeographic,Nature,theNewYorkTimesandmanyotherpublications.HismostrecentbookisTheBoyWhoPlayedwithFusion:ExtremeScience,ExtremeParenting,andHowtoMakeaStar(HoughtonMifflinHarcourt,2015).RecentArticlesbyTomClynesNurturingGeniusRecentArticlesbyNaturemagazineMouseEmbryosGrownwithoutEggsorSpermDoesaSmallpoxDrugWorkforMonkeypox?WhatScientistsKnowNewPolioOutbreaksWorldwidePutScientistsonAlertReadThisNextGeneticEngineeringMouseEmbryosGrownwithoutEggsorSpermCassandraWillyardandNaturemagazineNeuroscienceSeetheTopEntriesintheArtofNeuroscienceCompetitionFionnaM.D.SamuelsandLizTormesArtificialIntelligenceThisArtificialIntelligenceLearnslikeaWiddleBabyChristopherIntagliataPharmaceuticalsDoesaSmallpoxDrugWorkforMonkeypox?WhatScientistsKnowMaxKozlovandNaturemagazineMentalHealthDoctorsNeedtoLearntoTalkaboutSuicideRodolfoBonninandLeonardM.Gralnik|OpinionMaterialsScienceRecycledWindTurbinesCouldBeMadeintoPlexiglass,DiapersorGummyBearsSophieBushwickAdvertisementInthestoreScientificAmericanRaiseGreatKids! 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