Parenting the Young Gifted Child: Supportive Behaviors.

Quantitative and qualitative methods were used to determine the role that parents of precocious children play in the lives of their child and to arrive at a description of parenting behaviors in five categories considered important in child development. Analysis revealed that the parents in the study were dedicated parents who practiced an authoritative style of parenting. Data obtained on a standardized instrument showed that the parents fostered creativity, showed low levels of frustration, exerted an appropriate amount of flexible control, viewed play as a highly valuable activity, showed confidence in their ability as teachers, and acted as facilitators of the teaching/learning process.

The family has a profound effect on how a child develops. Desirable parenting behaviors facilitate cognitive and conceptual development as well as nurture gifts and talents exhibited by the child. Parents of gifted young children are faced with developmental characteristics unique to the gifted child (Chamrad & Robinson, 1986, p. 74), and these parents may encounter many atypical parenting situations. Cornell (1984) concluded that families in which there is a gifted child are generally praiseworthy and commendable; problems tend to arise when there is an overemphasis on the child's giftedness. Cornell & Grossberg (1987) also reported that supportive and open family relationships are important to the child's self-esteem and intrapersonal and interpersonal adjustment.

The research described here addresses the family relationship issue and attempts to discover if parenting behaviors of young gifted children were desirable, unique, and showed commonalities.

Hypothesis

The authors hypothesized that quantitative and qualitative information reveals trends, patterns, and motifs from which a paradigm or description of parenting styles of parents of young gifted children can be derived. They also hypothesized that the parents' behaviors assessed by a formal instrument would be in the desirable and highly desirable range. Assumptions in the hypothesis were made that gifted children can be identified and that their characteristics are the result of the interaction between genetic inheritance and environmental characteristics.

A large volume of information about the importance of early experiences is contained in the natural and social sciences. Current research, for example, has revealed the importance of experience and learning on the physical brain (Kandel & Hawkins, 1992; Ornstein & Thompson, 1984), has explored the concept of neurological pruning (Goleman, Kaufman, & Ray, 1992; Ornstein & Thompson, 1984), and has begun to establish the relationships between gender and cognitive variations.

Researchers have studied the impact of family-child interactions on human growth and development. Drew (1976) concluded that the values and expectations of parents are those against which the child first measures himself (p. 28). Brody and Axelrad (1978) concluded that early experiences are related to emotional stability and to social and intellectual competence (p. 32).

In studies by Sloane (1985) and McCurdy (1959), adults who were child prodigies characterized their parents as affectionate and supportive, reported that they were expected to make constructive use of time, and that high performance standards existed. A study by Goertzel, Goertzel, and Goertzel (1978) of the lives of more than 300 famous 20th-century men and women presented a different picture. Many of those famous adults had agonizing childhoods spent in a bleak, troubled homes, some had an unstimulating home environment, and others had domineering or neglectful parents. Those who succeeded, despite a non-supportive upbringing and psychologically damaging childhood, can be described as resilient or invulnerable to at-risk conditions. Nevertheless, a smoother and perhaps happier path for the maximization of human potential is being a member of a loving, culturally rich family (Tannenbaum, 1992) with a high degree of parental involvement (Howe, 1990).

Retrospective studies of child prodigies, such as those by McCurdy (1959), Goertzel, Goertzel, and Goertzel (1978), Bloom (1985), and Sloane (1985) focused on intellectual stimulation provided in the home or parental support for a specific talent, such as musical talent. Bloom (1985) detailed the importance of the early developmental period and early recognition of and support for gifts and talents. Cox, Daniel & Boston (1985) conducted a retrospective study of eminent individuals called the MacArthur Fellows, who reported that their parents provided the greatest influence in their lives. This study pointed out several important parental behaviors: supportive attitudes; homes with books, journals, newspapers; trips to the library; parents who read constantly and who read to their children; and respect for their children and their feelings, beliefs, and ideas.

Feldman (1991) conducted ten-year longitudinal case studies of six child prodigies. Although, in many ways the families of the child prodigies were like all other families, major differences emerged in patterns of family activity, setting of priorities, allocation of resources, and in what proportion of the energies of family members is channeled into a single child's education and preparation (p. 170).

Despite the abundance of research involving human development, there are a few studies that specifically involved parents of young gifted children. Karnes, Shwedel, and Steinberg (1984) found that, when compared to parents of non-gifted children, parents of gifted children spent substantially more time with their children on school related activities, encouraged their children to be more independent, expected their children to complete activities with little, if any assistance, and were also emotionally supportive of their children and their efforts. Creel and Karnes (1988) found that parents of gifted children mentioned early verbal expression and unusual curiosity level as characteristics of their children.

Johnson and Lewman's (1990) study of parental perceptions of their young gifted child's characteristics showed that the parents described differing characteristics for boys and girls. Although there were no significant differences in IQs, there were significant differences in parental perceptions along gender lines in terms of their child's use of leisure time, early indications of intellectual ability, and favorite books. In contrast, Anderson & Tollefson (1991) found that, when making judgments about activities and accomplishments of their gifted child, parents did not report using different criteria for boys and girls. The parents reported talking with their child and using their child's stated preference as an important criterion for selecting activities.

A study by Louis and Lewis (1992) addressed the identification of preschool gifted children, and the relationship between parental perceptions of the characteristics of their child and the measured ability of the child. The results of the study showed that 61% of the children screened had IQ scores between 132 and 185. The researchers concluded that the parents were quite accurate in their perceptions and judgments of their children's intellectual ability, and that the parents studied were reliable judges of the gifted potential of their preschool children.

One author of this article found in her own classroom and experience that much of the research discussed in this section is valid. The purpose of this research was to build upon previous research, and add to the body of knowledge about supportive parental behaviors.

Methodology

Quantitative and qualitative research methods were used. The Parent as a Teacher Inventory (PAAT) was used to gather quantitative and demographic data. The researchers gathered information on specific parental self-reported behaviors in five categories on the PAAT Inventory, an instrument developed by Strom (1984). The demographic information gathered on the PAAT Identification Sheet included information about the child, including sex, present grade level, ethnicity, and information about parent(s) - marital status, education, occupation, and income. The researchers used follow-up questionnaires, interviews, and naturalistic observation to verify the data on the PAAT Inventory, as well as to provide a broader, richer, and more in-depth picture of a specific family.

Quantitative Component

Data collection

The researchers contacted 24 university faculty members and 39 administrators/coordinators of gifted programs in 17 states to obtain names of potential participants. Participants received a packet that contained a letter with basic information and directions, the PAAT Inventory (which contains detailed directions), and a self-addressed stamped envelope for return of the PAAT.

Quantitative instrumentation

The PAAT Inventory is a standardized assessment device in which the statistical reliability has been verified through several revisions and field tests since the original instrument was developed. The PAAT is a composite attitude scale that assesses parent attitudes about certain aspects of parent-child relationship and interactions. It contains statements describing parental expectations and actions parents take in response to the child's behavior. The five areas assessed are the key domains of child development: Creativity, Frustration, Control, Play, and Teaching-Learning

Qualitative Component

Data collection and questionnaire

One of the researchers designed the follow-up mailed questionnaire. Questions about reading, the home's literacy environment, and communication were based on theory, research, and practice, including research reviewed by Colangelo and Dettman (1983), and research by Jackson (1988) and Henderson, Jackson, and Mukamal (1993). The questions about television watching were based on research reviewed by Colangelo and Dettman (1983), Ableman's research (1991), and work by Healy (1990). The questions about leisure time pursuits were based on research reviewed by Shore, Cornell, Robinson, and Ward (1991).

The data from the PAAT Inventory and from the follow-up questionnaire provided direction for the in-home interviews and naturalistic observations. Audio and video taping were used during the interviews and observations. Interview protocols were developed for each in-home interview. The tapes were transcribed and reviewed for data analysis by the researcher and an independent auditor.

Analysis of Data

Quantitative analysis included scoring the answers on the PAAT Inventory and the information on the Identification Sheet. Qualitative analysis involved reviewing and compiling data obtained from the qualitative methods of a questionnaire and naturalistic information-gathering and determining the desirability/non-desirability of the scores obtained in the five sub tests of the PAAT and in the overall score. The case study involved transcribing the audio and video tapes. An independent auditor examined the audio and video tapes and the researcher's color coded field notes.

Results

Quantitative Analysis

Of the 66 PAAT Inventories mailed, 46 (69.7%) completed Inventories were returned. Of the 30 states represented in the initial contacts, parents in nine states returned the PAAT Inventory. The percentages of returns were: 20 (43.5% of total n) returns from Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, and Ohio (the Midwest region); 18 (39.1% of total n) returns from Georgia and Louisiana (Southwest region); and 8 (17.4% of total n) returns from New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Utah (Southwest region).

Demographic Information

Girls represented 63% and boys 37% of the identified gifted children. The largest ethnic group represented was Anglo/White, at 91%. Fifty-nine percent of the families had two children, and 52% of the gifted children were first born. Eighty-nine percent of the surveys were filled out by mothers, and 89% of the families were intact with both a mother and father living in the household. Ninety-five percent of the parents who filled out the Inventory had at least some college experience; 41% had a graduate school degree. Slightly more than half had family incomes above $50,000. Seventy-two percent of the parents worked outside of the home; six percent of those employed outside of the home worked part-time.

Mean Scores

Mean scores were derived and were compared to the absolute total mean and subset means of the PAAT Inventory. The total sample mean was 153.2, with a standard deviation of 10.3.

Creativity. The total sample mean score was 29.35, with a standard deviation of 2.52. The parents surveyed encouraged their children to ask questions and to guess at answers and solutions to problems. The parents were adaptable and allowed their children to be flexible and imaginative and to make independent judgments and choices.

Frustration. The total sample mean was 29.5, with a standard deviation of 2.84. This subset dealt with expectations, and reasonable demands consistent with the developmental level of the child. Undesirable range scores on this subset or on particular items indicated an area of present or potential frustration during parent-child interactions. Desirable and highly desirable scores in this subset showed that the parents studied were flexible, set expectations that were consistent with their child's developmental levels, allowed persistence and task commitment, did not demand premature termination of activities, and tolerated a child's appeals for communication and observation. The parents encouraged and accepted normal developmental behaviors and set expectations compatible with individual needs and abilities.

Control. This subset measures amount of parental domination of the child and decision making strategies used by the parent. On this subset, the mean was 29.2 and the standard deviation was 2.61. The issues in this subset dealt with power, obedience, initiative, self-assertion, self-disclosure, and guilt, and assessed the parent's willingness to allow the child to make appropriate decisions, and to find out the consequences that naturally flowed from the decisions. These issues affect identity formation and personality development. The scores in this subset indicated that the parents were willing to share control and to let their children make certain decisions, to influence affairs in the home, to assert their ability to produce changes, and to reasonably disagree with the parent. The parent allowed the child to be spontaneous, accepted the child's need for privacy, and allowed the child to wield some degree of power over the environment.

Play. The subset Play is critical because of its relationship to the other subsets and because of the volume of research that supports the benefits of play. In their summary of the research on play, Nourot and Van Hoom (1991) indicated that play supported symbolic development, aided in the formation of problem solving abilities, and facilitated perspective taking. Play also fostered creative behaviors, facilitated emergent literacy, and aided the development of inner control and sociocentric thinking. Children who engaged in make-believe were likely to be happier and more flexible in new situations, and were also more likely to practice complex cognitive abilities, such as divergent and creative thinking, and problem solving. Children with those types of thinking abilities were more popular with peers, and children who play imaginatively can concentrate better, are more task persistent, can cope better with anxiety and stress, can tolerate frustration better, are less impulsive and possess greater self-control. Parents who understand the relationship between play and development and between play and learning, are more likely to encourage playing and playful behaviors. The scores showed that the parents who were performing in the desirable and highly desirable range, recognized the value of play, understood its links with learning and creativity, and participated as observer, partner, and model. The total sample mean on this subset was 31.9, with a standard deviation of 3.37.

Teaching-Learning. Since parents are generally the most constant, if not the only teachers that children have during their most malleable period, the job of teacher is an important one for the parent. Self-confidence and respect for the child's needs and developmental levels are the two hallmarks of a parent's ability to perform the teaching tasks adequately and effectively. Equally important is the parent's ability to judge the motivational level of the child and to measure the impact and outcomes of their teaching efforts.

This subset, designed to reveal the parents' attitudes about their abilities in the teaching/learning realm, also produced desirable and highly desirable scores. The parents in this study were aware of the importance of the early learning period, and they felt capable and competent to teach their children efficiently and effectively. They accepted their child's motivation, shared control during the teaching process, and properly judged the impact of their educational efforts. The sample mean of 33.2 and the standard deviation of 3.37, on the Teaching/Learning subset, was the highest of the five subsets.

ANOVAs and Independent T-Tests

Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was conducted to determine if there were any statistically significant differences in the mean scores of the parents by region or by academic level. There were three regions used for the groupings by region - the Midwest (n=20), the Southeast (n= 18), and the Southwest (n=8). By regions, the means and standard deviations were: Midwest, 156.8 and 10.4; Southeast, 149.9 and 9.9; and Southwest, 150.5 and 10.5. There were no significant differences in the subset mean scores or the total mean scores of the parents by geographical region, F(2, 43) = 2.42, p [is greater than] .10. There were three groupings by academic level attained by the parent who filled out the Inventory: graduate school degree (n = 19), some graduate school and college degree (n = 16), and some college, post high school training and a high school diploma (n= 11). The means and standard deviations for the three groups were: graduate school degree, 148.2 and 26.4; some graduate school and college degree, 151.7 and 10.1; and some college, posts high school a training and high school diploma, 154.3 and 10.3. There were no significant differences by academic level of parents who filled out the PAAT Inventory, F = .40, p [is greater than] .10.

There were no significant differences on an independent t-test between the mean scores of the fathers when compared to randomly matched mothers. The means and standard deviations were: (a) fathers, 156.4 and 12.50; and (b) mothers, 156.8 and 7.3. There were no significant differences on an independent t-test between the parents from ethnic groups, Black, Hispanic, and dual-language speakers when randomly matched with Anglo/White parents. Parents from ethnic groups had obtained a mean of 153.8 and standard deviation of 14.6, and Anglo/While parents had a mean of 156.0 and standard deviation of 11.3. The two groups for the independent t-test by income level were below $49,999 (mean of 150.9, standard deviation of 11.1) and above $50,000 (mean of 154.5 and standard deviation of 10.1).

Qualitative Description

Qualitative analysis was based on the above demographic information and the follow-up questionnaire. Additionally, person-to-person interviews and observations of the case study family, both in the home and outside the home in other naturalistic settings, were used in the qualitative descriptions which follow.

Follow-up Questionnaire

Of the 23 families invited to fill out the follow-up questionnaire, eight sets of parents, including the Case Study parents, agreed to complete the questionnaire.

Case Study: In-home Interviews and Observations

The family that participated in the case study lived in the Midwest region, in a town of approximately 40,000. The economy is predominantly based on light industry, farming, services, including health, and a medium-sized (8,000 students) regional 4-year university. Both of the parents are university faculty members.

One objective for the case study was to measure the consistency in parents' observed behaviors with answers for the 50 statements in the PAAT Inventory. A summary sheet was used to record matches between observed behaviors and Inventory answers. The observations of the parental interactions with the gifted child showed a grand total ratio of 44+ (consistent) and 5- (inconsistent), and 1 N/O (not observed).

An equally important objective for the case study was to provide a more in-depth and richer picture of the parents of a gifted child, and to discover some reasons why the parents had the parenting styles and behaviors shown on the PAAT Inventory and follow-up questionnaire. Therefore, the interviews and to some extent the observations, probed for reasons and elaborations about the parents' actions. Along with questions about their backgrounds, their own goals and their goals for their child, the parents were asked to describe their parents' parenting styles and their own parenting styles.

Both parents had younger brothers and both got along well with their brothers while they were growing up. Education was highly valued in both families, and they both did very well in elementary and high school, even though they didn't have to try very hard. They described their parents as democratic parents, and they both said they prefer to be democratic, authoritative parents. The marriage and parenting duties revolved around shared responsibilities. Reading is a passion for both parents, both parents read to the children quite a bit, and the older daughter began reading naturally, without being taught, at around three and a-half-years-old.

The parents said that they would both encourage academic success, but did not consider grades the sole measure of academic success. They also value social abilities, and do not want their gifted child to be singled out to the point that she will be hampered in social or other situations. Both parents said that almost anything the child would do with her future would be acceptable, as long as she was doing what she wanted, and was behaving in a responsible, humane manner. They would both support any goals she chooses for herself, and that, within reason, they are both willing to go to any lengths to help her achieve her goals. The mother said that any support given will be viewed in terms of the impact on the entire family. When asked about values and ethics, the parents said that values are transmitted to the children by doing them, not just by talking about them.

The parents were asked how they judge success and how they handle failure. The mother said that she judges success by how she interacts with other people and the quality of her relationships with others. The father said high self-esteem helps promote successful behaviors, which in turn boosts your confidence level. A confident person is better able to handle failure.

When asked to describe themselves as parents, they said that they are joyful, serious, grateful and happy to be parents, intentional about their parenting, have developed a rhythm and flow to their parenting, have some behaviors based on undiscussed assumptions, are consistent in their beliefs about parenting and marriage, and that they deal with situations and events, including inappropriate behaviors, mainly through discussion. They said it is all right for children to know that people get angry. There are "rules to follow when you are angry with someone" and one of the rules is to practice self-control, and that they always try to model self-control. They said that the main job of parents is to get the child ready to be an adult, an independent, functioning, outgoing, socially responsible person.

The case study family was providing a highly facilitative, nurturing environment for both of their children, for their marriage, and for the family unit. The parents behaved as if each family member held a distinct and unique place in the family unit. The parents appeared to be adept at recognizing both of their children's strengths and talents, and then capitalizing in a sensitive manner on their distinctive abilities. The parents were openly affectionate, were dominating or authoritarian only in matters of safety or when time presented a constraint, allowed their children a great deal of freedom, including freedom of self-expression, were respectful of their children and expected the same respect from their children. Their home was family-centered, and the parents seemed to be able to strike a balance between their own interests, hobbies, and activities and those of their children, and there were many interests in common, such as reading, swimming, and nature studies. The parents recognized their gifted child's drive to investigate and encouraged their chid's active explorations, experimentation, and drive for knowledge. Materials to support the quest for learning were provided. There were consistently enforced guidelines for behavior. The gifted child had certain routine responsibilities, such as placing recyclable materials in containers. The parents were committed to their child developing her own code of ideals and values, but clearly hoped that respect for other people and making a contribution to society would be part of their daughter's moral code.

Auditor's Examination

The auditor's examination was intended to verify the fittingness, confirmability, and coherence of the conclusions and to alert the researcher about any partiality in the conclusions and judgments about the qualitative data. The auditor reviewed all of data, drew her own conclusions, and then determined the agreement between her conclusions and those of the researcher. The auditor's examination showed a 94% agreement with the researcher's conclusions.

Discussion

Summary and Discussion of Results

The hypothesis that the scores on the PAAT would be in the desirable and highly desirable range was confirmed. There were trends and patterns revealed in examination of the quantitative and qualitative data that allowed for the description of the parenting styles of the sample in this study. The anticipated and unanticipated limitations of the study precluded writing a definitive and exhaustive description; therefore, the description must be seen as preliminary and tentative. Unanticipated limitations of this research included the small sample size, the limited number of states represented in the final sample, and the high level of education attained by the majority of parents who choose to participate in the study.

Since the parents' total scores and subset scores were above the PAAT Inventory instrument means and since ANOVA revealed no significant differences in the mean scores on the PAAT Inventory by region, gender, academic background, or socioeconomic level, the parents studied were tentatively classified as a unique parenting group. The parents surveyed encouraged creativity and risk-taking. They did not place inappropriate or rigidly enforced demands on their children, and there was a degree of shared control. The parents played with their children, and regarded play as a significant method for learning. Confidence in their ability to act as teachers was also a hallmark of the parents' style.

The data from the case study and the follow-up questionnaire supported and validated the information from the PAAT. Conclusions involved parental awareness of characteristics of their gifted child, especially as compared to the typical child, television watching behaviors, literacy activities and types of literacy materials used, types of verbal interactions, and leisure time pursuits, hobbies, and family related social activities.

The answers to statements on the follow-up questionnaire confirmed the research conclusions of Louis and Lewis (1992), Scott, Perou, Urbano, Hogan, and Gold, (1992), and the indicators of giftedness in young children compiled from recent research by Tannenbaum (1992), as well as the commonly used three-ting conception of giftedness developed by Renzulli (1977). The majority of the parents (80%) indicated that their child had an advanced vocabulary, processed information quickly, recalled facts easily, wanted to know how things work, put unrelated ideas together in new and different ways, asked reasons why and questioned everything, liked grown-up things and to be with other people, had a great deal of curiosity, was adventurous, had a good sense of humor, tended to dominate others if given the chance, had good physical condition and body control, was aware of his/her environment, and wanted to do things for him/herself early in age. The parents scored their child as having persistence, task commitment, and long attention span to a higher degree than the typical child.

The questionnaire contained questions about television watching, literacy behaviors, verbal interactions, leisure time pursuits, hobbies, and social activities. The amount of time spent watching television averaged about 90 minutes/day. Most of the time was spent watching with other children, including siblings, and children watched a mixture of educational and entertainment. Four of the five parents discussed the content of at least some shows, especially the educational shows.

The amount of time spent engaged in literacy behaviors and the comments made by the parents showed that they respected and valued literacy behaviors, including print literacy. The amount of time spent reading to the child ranged from zero to two hours a day. The oldest child of the five children (age 8) was not read to because he was old enough to read independently. The types of books read to the child and read independently included narrative and expository texts. All of the children had a library card, and went to the library a minimum of once a month. The number of trips to the library varied over the year, and were more frequent in the summer. The parents also spent quite a bit of time talking to their child, another type of language arts activity.

Both the follow-up questionnaires and the case study data showed that the parents spend a great deal of time with their children, indicating how important family life was to them. They spent time talking to their children, reading to their children, taking them to the library, and engaging in family-oriented pursuits. Though these were families in which all but one of the parents worked out of the home, the children were very involved in leisure time pursuits, hobbies, and social activities. Personal activities were primarily chosen by the child, and social activities were family choices. The activities included arts and crafts, collections, performing arts, sports, technological hobbies, and other social activities, such as visiting friends and family. The parents were active and involved with their own lives and the lives of their gifted child, and the families were also very active as family units. Through a number of educationally and culturally relevant activities, the children were gaining useful and important subject and domain knowledge (Alexander, Kulikowich, & Schulze, 1994). The case study parents played with their children, and engaged their children in imaginative acts. They placed a high priority on time spent with their children and balanced job responsibilities with their goal to spend time with the family.

Conclusions

During the course of this research, the parenting styles of parents of gifted children were explored and described, specifically in five areas measured by the PAAT Inventory and broadly through questionnaires, interviews, and observation. The study has yielded some preliminary, yet highly intriguing, results about the behaviors of parents of gifted children.

The evidence indicates that the parents in this study are doing a desirable job of parenting in those areas assessed by the PAAT Inventory. The educational background and professional standing of the parents are frequently cited as influencing the parenting approach, parental belief systems, parenting skills, and parenting behaviors (Anderson, 1961; Barbe, 1964; Goldberg, 1965; Karnes, Schwedel, & Steinberg, 1984; Lewis & Michalson, 1985; Strom & Johnson, 1978). Many of the parents in this study were highly educated, professional individuals with above average incomes. The quantitative and qualitative data showed that forty-four (95%) of the parents who filled out the PAAT Inventory had attended college and nineteen (41%) of those had a graduate school degree. Of the spouses, thirty-five (83%) had attended college and seventeen (40%) had graduate school degrees. Nevertheless, the reader is advised against making the assumption that the parents who participated exhibited desirable behaviors because they are well-educated. Logically, the other side of this assumption is that less well educated parents will exhibit less desirable parenting behaviors! Likewise, the reader is cautioned about assuming that all well-educated parents are good parents.

That there were more girls (63%) than boys (37%) in the age group included in the study lends support to findings that gifted girls are more likely to exhibit advanced development and are more likely to be ready for kindergarten earlier than gifted boys (Kerr, 1991; Silverman, 1986). In addition, psychometric tests frequently rely on language-related items, and are more likely to pick up the highly advanced verbal and advanced vocabulary of very young gifted girls (Silverman, 1986). The largest ethnic group represented was Anglo/White, at 91%, was consistent with the ethnic proportional representation in gifted programs nationwide (approximately 9% are from ethnic groups and 91% are Anglo/White). A majority of the families had two children (59%), and the largest percentage of the identified gifted children were first born (52%). This is consistent with research that shows that many identified gifted children are first born or hold a special place in the family (Albert, 1978; Olszewski, Kulieke, & Buescher, 1987).

Areas of interest in the qualitative data concerned literacy and leisure time pursuits. Literacy, especially print literacy, is important because it is part of the wider concept of cultural literacy. Literacy is the key that allows individuals to share cultural knowledge because processing shared knowledge involves a common language base, print literacy, and most recently computer literacy. Exposure to both cultural and literacy experiences takes place through direct teaching/learning and through leisure time activities, which facilitate discovery learning. This study touched on the complementary areas of literacy and leisure time pursuits, and the preliminary information can provide direction for further research. The parents exposed the children to diverse cultural experiences that ranged from family visits to zoos and museums to individual child's participation in hobbies, performing arts, and sports. The quantity and quality of time spent with the child were also measured in this research. The parents who filled out the follow-up questionnaire appeared to spend quite a bit of time with their child, as indicated by the amount of time spent talking to the child, taking the child to the library, and time spent engaged in social activities. Even though almost all of the parents worked full time, they devoted as much time as possible to their other important job, being parents.

Based on the data, an appropriate description of the parents of young gifted children is that these parents have desirable to highly desirable parenting behaviors in the areas of creativity, frustration, control, play and teaching/learning. Also, the parents who participated in the qualitative components of this study were active, involved in their lives and the lives of their children, tended to use an authoritative parenting style, which Baumrind (1971) described as the most desirable of the three parenting styles. They were educated, literate, respectful of their children as both young children and as young gifted children. They tended to approach their parenting responsibilities seriously, and acted upon their value systems. Their main approach to parenting their young gifted child seemed to be one of balancing the needs and interests of the gifted child and the needs and interests of the family unit. They allowed the child to make choices, but also planned activities that exposed the child to aspects of cultural literacy. Providing choices and exposure to a variety of experiences were viewed as a way to help the child reach optimal development. They were inclined to use nurturing, but not smothering and overprotecting, behaviors.

The parents acted as guides and mentors and simultaneously allowed their child to be exposed to and to learn from a variety of socially and culturally relevant experiences. They provided their children with both developmentally and individually appropriate experiences and activities, which the children had some voice and choice in selecting. They recognized the motivation behind their children's behaviors, and focused on educationally important and cognitive skills and strategies, while also recognizing the need for supporting the psychomotor, social, emotional, and communicative development of their children.

Recommendations

There are many compelling reasons for studying parenting styles of parents of identified gifted children or potentially identifiable gifted children. One is to discover if these parents are doing a desirable job of parenting. Another is to provide parents with assurance about their appropriate behaviors as well as recommendations for other behaviors to adopt.

Information about how parents of gifted children go about the job of parenting should be of interest to other parents, early childhood professionals, early childhood educators, and administrators. The fact that these families are so involved with their children can easily be capitalized on by the schools. Most parents, including parents of gifted children, would like to be active participants in their child's educational process.

Since it was not possible to get a complete parenting picture from a 50-item instrument, a more holistic description of parenting styles was provided from the follow-up questionnaires and the naturalistic interviews and observations. Coding of the questionnaires and one family case study revealed several trends and patterns, many of which were supported by previous research. Because of the small sample size, the self-selection of the parents, and the limitations of the PAAT Inventory, the findings should be considered preliminary. More research, in both the quantitative and qualitative paradigms, is required. The PAAT could be used to study a larger sample of parents on a state-by-state basis, for example, and include a greater diversity among the participants in all areas - racial, ethnic, educational, and socio-economic. Longitudinal case studies, during which observations of the families in a variety of settings were conducted, could provide a very rich picture of all the interacting systems that make up the world of the families studied.

Areas examined in the PAAT Inventory, especially the areas of frustration and control, can reveal promising information for counselors and teachers working with gifted young children and their parents. Parent education workshops, such as those developed by Strom, Johnson, Strom, and Strom (1992), can help parents recognize and set up appropriate expectations for their children. This ability, in turn, could have a positive influence on the gifted child's self-esteem.

Another fruitful area for research is the area of leisure time pursuits of families in which there is an identified gifted child, or more than one child so identified. It appeared from the data in this study that even very young gifted children have quite a bit of influence on the selection of leisure time pursuits and hobbies. Future research may determine if areas of interest in the early years are sustained as the child gets older, and the extent to which the parents are willing to go to support unusual interests or hobbies that are complex or demand a great deal of time and/or money to maintain. Another area to explore is the amount of time spent reading aloud to the child. Potential investigations in this area include comparisons between the amount of time spent reading to the child by parents of gifted children and by parents of non-gifted children and tracking rates of reading out loud over time to determine the rate of decreasing reading time and at what ages reading aloud decreases.

As life becomes increasingly complex and fast-paced, and as technology becomes one of the avenues for sustaining literacy and knowledge levels, the importance of a firm foundation in early years also increases in importance. Although there continues to be shifts in the paradigms upon which society is based, certain institutions continue to provide the underpinning for a successful society. The family is one of these institutions, and appropriate and desirable parenting is the crucial job of a parent. Research is a tool for helping parents improve upon and modify their parenting skills and parenting behaviors.

It is hoped that parents of gifted young children can acquire or increase their sense of assurance about the parenting and teaching skills they possess and knowledge about skills needed to maximize their child's development and help their child bring to fruition his/her potential. Teaching and learning begins in the home, during the most malleable period of an individual's life. It begins, properly, with the child's earliest caregivers and most consistently present teachers, usually the child's parent(s). Essentially, the parents and family play the principal role in the education of any child, including the gifted child.

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Peggy L. Snowden is an Assistant Professor of Early Childhood and

Linda G. Christian is an Associate Professor of Early Childhood at Arkansas Tech University in Russellville.

Manuscript submitted May, 1997.

Revision accepted November, 1997.