“Raising Gifted Children” Metaphor from the Perspectives of Turkish Gifted and Talented Children’s Parents

,


Introduce the Problem
Having a gifted and talented child is a complex process that comes with its own challenges.Parents often experience uncertainty and confusion about how to meet the needs of their gifted child.With the diagnosis of their children, parents need support in understanding their children's strengths and weaknesses and identifying the resources that can be used to support them.All these unknowns can create anxiety and concern for families.According to Silverman (1993), the anxieties experienced by families can be categorized into two groups (Silverman, 1993).The first group includes concerns about recognizing and assessing giftedness, coping with the characteristics of giftedness, and addressing motivational issues.The concerns in the second group are related to the parent's perception of their competence in raising a gifted child, nurturing self-discipline, questioning overexcitability, school-related anxieties, concerns about appropriate school placement, and relationships with school personnel.Providing appropriate guidance and support for families of gifted children with such concerns falls within the scope of family counseling services.Therefore, it is essential for professionals providing guidance services to gifted and talented children to include the parents of the gifted child in their focus.
When parents realize or learn that their children are gifted, they may fear that their children will experience a lack of fit with their peers or be overshadowed by them (Rotigel, 2003).Additionally, they may experience a strong sense of inadequacy in parenting attitudes and skills (Luo & Kiewra, 2020).According to the Columbus Group, the uniqueness of gifted children needs a modification of parental attitudes in a way that is conducive to the child's development (Silverman, 1997).The appropriate parental role for a gifted child should involve coping with their child's giftedness and should carry the responsibility of finding the right parenting approach (Rash, 1998;Schader, 2008).
Gifted and talented children have the potential to achieve high levels of success in many areas.However, the asynchrony in their development can hinder their ability to demonstrate this potential.It can be said that this asynchronous development is one of the fundamental characteristics of gifted and talented children.Asynchronous development refers to an imbalance in cognitive, social, and emotional development, and this imbalance tends to increase in proportion to cognitive capacity.While gifted children can produce advanced cognitive products, they may not be equally successful in dealing with social and emotional challenges (Silverman & Leviton, 1991;Roedell, 1986).This situation, which is just one of the characteristic features of gifted children, suggests that parents of gifted and talented children need support and have to adapt to different roles.
When examining the literature on parents of gifted and talented children, several recurring themes can be identified.These themes include enhancing their children's potential, coping with their children's overexcitabilities, acquiring appropriate communication skills, and managing sibling and spousal relationships in line with their children's needs (Dettmann & Colangelo, 1980;Probst, 2005;Schader, 2008;Peterson, 2018).However, for a parent with a gifted and talented child to acquire all these skills and competencies, it is necessary to first raise awareness about their child's giftedness and provide accurate information about what giftedness entails.
The presence of gifted and talented children within the family system can have an impact on the relationships among family members.McMann and Oliver (1998) attribute this to the asynchronous development, high energy levels, early departure from home due to rapid educational advancement, and power imbalances within the family (children's authoritarian nature) of gifted children (McMann & Oliver, 1998).Rash (1998) states that the needs of parents of gifted children are often neglected, and they receive well-intentioned but misguided advice from unreliable sources (Rasch, 1998).Educators can raise awareness among parents and increase their involvement in the education of gifted and talented children.The lack of sufficient support, resources, and information in the immediate environment of parents of gifted and talented children often drives them to seek professional support (Silverman, 1997).
The influence and importance of the family in preventing social and emotional problems experienced by gifted and talented children are significant.Creating supportive family environments, increasing awareness about what giftedness truly means and the characteristics of these children, conducting group activities with other parents to address common issues, and correcting misconceptions about giftedness are believed to empower parents and lead to a more satisfying relationship with their children (Webb, 2007).Webb (2004) states that many parents do not share with others that their child is gifted and talented.This may stem from parents not knowing exactly how to respond to their child's giftedness and being unsure of the reactions they may receive from society (Silverman, 1997;Clark, 2012).Therefore, in the literature, alternative expressions such as "highly curious, fast learners, bright, and high potential" are used instead of directly using the term "gifted" to avoid elitism and to be perceived more positively by society (Webb, 2007;Webb, 2004 ) The unrealistic perceptions of parents with gifted children about "raising gifted children" may lead to have more fears about the process and the development of high expectations.Therefore, this research aims to explore how Turkish parents of gifted children's perceive the process of raising gifted children.Furthermore, the obtained data aims to assist in the development of programs for parents of gifted children, with the goal of providing support and guidance.

Participant (Subject) Characteristics
The study group of the research consists of a total of 94 parents, all of whom have a child diagnosed as gifted and talented and are at least 6 years old.Also all parents' children receive differentiated education.Of the parents who participated in the study, 88 were mothers and 8 were fathers.In the elimination phase of the content analysis method, the forms of 94 parents were examined, and 15 of them were excluded.The findings of the research were analyzed with the data of 79 parents.(72 were mothers 91% and 7 were fathers 9%) Among the participating parents, 19 % have completed high school, 63 % have completed university, and 12 % have a master's or doctoral degree.The ages of the participants range from 32 to 45.All participants were included in the study on a voluntary basis.
To uncover the mental images that parents of gifted and talented children have regarding raising gifted children, each parent was asked to complete the sentence "Raising a gifted and talented child is like... because..." using the phrase provided on the top of a blank page.For this purpose, parents were given a blank sheet of paper with the phrase written on it and were asked to express their thoughts using this phrase, focusing on a single mental image (or metaphor).In studies where metaphor is used as a research tool, the term "like" is often used to evoke a clearer connection between the "subject of the metaphor" and the "source of the metaphor" (Saban, 2009).In this research, the inclusion of the term "because" also aimed to encourage participants to provide a "reason" (or "logical basis") for their metaphors.The sentences completed by the parents served as "documents" and "data" and were used as the primary source of information in this study.
2) In the elimination stage, papers that did not contain any metaphorical images or did not provide any justification (logical basis) for the respective metaphor were excluded.As a result, 15 papers were eliminated and considered beyond the scope of the research.When the analysis was performed on the remaining 79 forms, a total of 41 metaphorical images were identified, and an example metaphor list was created.This list was organized to serve two main purposes: (a) as a reference for categorizing the metaphors under specific categories, and (b) to validate the data analysis process and interpretations of this research (Saban, 2009).
3) In the category development stage, the metaphors generated by the participants were examined based on their common characteristics.The 41 metaphorical images were analyzed to understand how they conceptualized the phenomenon of raising intellectually gifted and talented children.Then, each metaphorical image was associated with a specific theme, resulting in the creation of 6 different conceptual categories.4) In the stage of ensuring validity and reliability, expert opinions were sought to confirm whether the metaphorical images represented the respective conceptual categories.For this purpose, input was obtained from 2 faculty members conducting relevant studies.The reliability was calculated using the formula by Miles and Huberman (1994): Reliability = agreement/(agreement + disagreement).In qualitative studies, a reliability level of 90% or higher indicates the desired level of reliability.In this specific research, a consensus (reliability) rate of 94% was achieved (Miles & Huberman, 1994).5) In the stage of data transfer to the computer environment, the 41 metaphorical images and 6 conceptual categories, determined through expert opinions, were tabulated and shared along with frequency and percentage distributions.The method section describes in detail how the study was conducted, including conceptual and operational definitions of the variables used in the study, Different types of studies will rely on different methodologies; however, a complete description of the methods used enables the reader to evaluate the appropriateness of your methods and the reliability and the validity of your results, It also permits experienced investigators to replicate the study, If your manuscript is an update of an ongoing or earlier study and the method has been published in detail elsewhere, you may refer the reader to that source and simply give a brief synopsis of the method in this section.

Results
The parents of intellectually gifted and talented children have generated a total of 41 valid metaphors related to the concept of raising intellectually gifted children.The obtained metaphors and their frequencies are provided in Table 1.As seen in Table 1, a total of 79 parents' data was collected, and it was found that 41 metaphors were generated from the collected data.The top three metaphors were found to be "growing a rare flower" with 8.9%, "cutting and polishing a diamond" with 8.9%, and "growing a delicate flower" with 6.3% frequency.
The metaphors produced by the participants were categorized into 6 conceptual categories.These categories are (1) A process requiring effort, care, and patience, (2) A challenging process, (3) A child-rearing process that benefits society, (4) A process that compels individuals to develop themselves, (5) A process aimed at meeting needs, (6) A process that enables fun and exploration of new things.
Category 1: Raising gifted and talented children as a process requiring effort, care, and patience Table 2 presents the metaphors forming the first category, how many parents developed each metaphor and their percentages.When Table 2 is examined, it can be seen that the category of "a process requiring effort, patience, and care" is represented by a total of 10 metaphors and 35 parents (44.5%).The most important metaphors in this category are "Growing a rare flower" (7 parents, 8.9%), "Processing a diamond" (7 parents, 8.9%), "Growing a delicate flower" (5 parents, 6.3%), and "Growing a seed" (5 parents, 6.3%).Some of the expressions from parents in this subcategory are as follows: • "Raising a gifted and talented child is like growing a rare flower.It requires planting it in the soil, watering it every day, and carefully removing dry leaves.It demands care, effort, and attention." • "Raising a gifted and talented child is like polishing a diamond.It can only be achieved through meticulous work and dedication to obtain a brilliant result." • "Raising a gifted and talented child is like taking a precious stone and delicately crafting it into a jewel with great care and craftsmanship.It requires attention and effort." These expressions reflect the perspective of parents regarding the process of raising a highly gifted and talented child, emphasizing the importance of care, effort, and attention involved in nurturing their potential.
Category 2: Raising gifted and talented children as a challenging process In Table 3, the metaphors that constitute the category of a challenging process of raising gifted and talented children are presented, along with the number of parents who developed each metaphor and their percentages.When Table 3 is analyzed, it is seen that the category of "a challenging process" is represented by a total of 12 metaphors and 18 parents (23.1%).The most important metaphors in this category are a difficult and enjoyable situation (4 parents, 5.1%), overcoming a difficult obstacle (3 parents, 3.8%), and embarking on a challenging journey (2 parents, 2.3%).Some of the parent statements in this subcategory are as follows: • "Raising a gifted child today is like overcoming a very difficult obstacle because there is a gap between what should be and what is." • "Raising a gifted child is like passing a camel through the eye of a needle because it is very difficult to explain the situation both to our close environment and to ourselves." • "Raising a gifted child is like trying to reach the light in the dark because there is no route or guide." Category 3: Raising gifted and talented children as a process of raising children to benefit society Table 4 presents the metaphors forming the category of raising gifted and talented children as a process of raising a child that will benefit society, the number of parents who developed each metaphor, and their percentages.According to Table 4, the category of "nurturing a child who will contribute to society" is represented by a total of 3 metaphors and 5 parents (6.4%).It can be said that the most significant metaphor in this category is "growing a fruit-bearing tree" (3 parents, 3.8%).Some expressions from parents in this subcategory include: • "Nurturing a gifted and talented child is like growing a fruit-bearing tree because they will be a beneficial individual to themselves, their family, and their surroundings throughout their lives." • "Nurturing a gifted and talented child is like raising a businessperson who can contribute to their country and nation, just like Vehbi Koç, because they can also contribute to our country's economy and future." • "Nurturing a gifted and talented child is like discovering medicine because they have the capacity to help humanity in the future." Category 4: Raising gifted and talented children as a process that requires the individual to develop himself/herself Table 5 presents the metaphors forming the category of raising gifted and talented children as a process that requires the individual to develop himself/herself, the number of parents who developed each metaphor, and their percentages.When Table 5 is analyzed, it is seen that the category of "a process that obliges the individual to improve himself/herself" is represented by a total of 4 metaphors and 6 parents (23,1%).It can be said that the most important metaphors that make up this category are constantly feeling inadequate (2 parents, 2.5%) and the necessity of self-improvement (2 parents, 2.5%).Some of the parent expressions in this subcategory are as follows: • "Raising a gifted child is like constantly improving ourselves because it is necessary to give clear answers to their needs, not haphazardly." • "Raising a gifted child is like being confronted with interesting questions at every moment and therefore realizing the necessity of self-development, because a person who develops himself/herself will benefit his/her family, children, and society more." • "Raising a gifted and talented child is like knowing how to get up from a fall, because many reasons can cause us to fall, what we need to do is to educate ourselves and get back on the road." Category 5: Raising gifted and talented children as a process of meeting needs Table 6 presents the metaphors forming the category of raising gifted and talented children as a process of meeting the needs of the individual, the number of parents who developed each metaphor, and their percentages.According to Table 6, we see that the category of "a process for meeting needs" is represented by a total of 6 metaphors and 7 parents (9%).It can be said that the most important metaphor in this category is driving a car with a very powerful engine (2 parents, 2.5%).Some of the parent statements in this subcategory are as follows: • "Raising a gifted and talented child is like driving a car with a very powerful engine, because, just like putting the right fuel in the car, you get full performance, in this case, the right performance with the right education." • "Raising a gifted and talented child is like meeting the water needs of a thirsty person in the desert because the important and reasonable thing is to meet the need.We will be the supplier of our child's educational needs." • "Raising a gifted and talented child is like raising several children with different ideas, thoughts, and interests at the same time because it is necessary to be able to answer the questions that change and increase every day and to meet these demands and demands." Category 6: Raising gifted and talented children as a process of fun and discovery In Table 7, the metaphors that make up the category of raising gifted children as a process of fun and discovering new things, the number of parents who developed each metaphor, and their percentages are presented.As can be seen from Table 7, the category of "a process that is fun and will enable discovering new things" is represented by a total of 5 metaphors and 8 parents (9%).It can be said that the most important metaphor in this category is an adventure full of discoveries (3 parents, 3.8%).Some of the parent statements in this subcategory are as follows: • "Raising a gifted and talented child is like an adventure full of fun and discoveries because every day you can see a different characteristic and be surprised." • "Raising a gifted child is like starting life all over again because it is so enjoyable to get to know life from scratch with his/her perspective, sense of curiosity, and selfless love." • "Raising a gifted and talented child is like being on a tropical island because there is so much to discover, it is fun, and at times scary."

Discussion
The aim of this study was to explore the perceptions of parents of gifted and talented children, who are considered to be a special group of parents, on the concept of education for their children.For this purpose, a total of 94 parents were contacted, all of whom were 6 years old and had a child diagnosed as gifted and talented.In order to reveal the parents' mental images of the concept of raising a gifted child, each of them was asked to complete the sentence "Raising a gifted child ... because ...".As a result of the analyses, it was found that a total of 41 valid metaphors were produced regarding parents' perceptions of child-rearing.The metaphors produced were grouped into 6 conceptual categories.These categories are (1) a process that requires work, care, and patience, (2) a challenging process, (3) a process of raising a child that will benefit society, (4) a process that requires the individual to develop, (5) a process that meets needs, (6) a process that provides fun and new discoveries.
When the metaphors produced by the parents participating in the study were analyzed, it was found that the first three metaphors were "growing a rare flower", "processing diamonds" and "growing a delicate flower".
Looking at the metaphor analysis studies conducted in Turkey, there are no studies on the parenting concepts of parents with gifted children, but there are studies on the concept of "child" with parents (Pesen, 2015;Koçer, Ünal, & Meral, 2015;Kıldan, Ahi, & Uluman, 2013).In the study conducted by Pesen (2015) in which the metaphors of parents towards the concept of "child" were analyzed, the metaphors of "tree", "flower" and "love" were produced in the first three places.In the study that looked at the metaphors produced for gifted children, the metaphors of a rare flower and a delicate flower stood out.In line with this finding, it can be said that gifted and talented children are perceived as more rare and delicate.Furthermore, in Pesen's (2015) study, the category that produced the highest number of metaphors was 'child as a source of happiness' (Pesen, 2015).When analyzing the metaphors produced by the parents participating in the study under this category, love, peace, joy, and happiness stand out, while it is noteworthy that parents with gifted children mostly included fun processes experienced as a result of new discoveries in the category "Raising gifted children as a process of fun and discovering new things".This finding suggests that parents with gifted children experience many uncertainties in the process of raising their children, but that they experience a process of enjoyment in discovering these uncertainties.Karaburçak and Taş (2019) conducted a study to explore the metaphors used by parents to describe "giftedness" or "special talent".The study included 52 parents, and a total of 46 different metaphors related to giftedness/special talent were collected and categorized into 6 categories.One of these categories was "giftedness/special talent as an element that develops when importance is given and effort is made".Metaphors such as ore, seed, and atom were created under this category.Expressions like "when processed, it turns into a precious metal, when nurtured, it sprouts and bears fruit" were observed (Karaburçak & Taş, 2019).These metaphors related to giftedness overlap with the category of "process requiring labor, care, and patience" in the metaphors of raising gifted children.Therefore, it can be said that raising children with intelligence, which is thought to develop with effort, requires the same level of effort and labor from parents.
In Kadıoğlu Ateş's (2018) metaphor analysis study, on the perception of gifted children among parents and families, a similar pattern emerged.The participants generated a total of 78 metaphors.The generated metaphors are generally positive in nature, including concepts such as coal, fertile soil, soil, ebb and flow, glass vase, computer, flower, chestnut, and so on.In the same study, it was found that both teachers and parents believe that gifted children can be better nurtured when they receive education suitable for their abilities.The inability to predict what the next step will be, excessive reactions, or endless questions and curiosity have also been used as metaphoric perceptions to describe their characteristics (Kadıoğlu Ateş, 2018).
When evaluating the metaphors about raising a gifted child, it can be said that parents of such a child need special education and support as much as their children.Therefore, it is crucial to raise awareness among parents of gifted children and provide them with training on the subject.In light of the findings obtained from the research, raising a gifted child can differ by parents' perceptions: • When it is seen as a process that requires effort, care, and patience, it can be thought that this sensitivity will be a source of stress and anxiety for the family.At this point, activities should be planned in the training programs for families to help them cope with the stress and anxiety that may be caused by having a different child.
• Considering it as a challenging process may frighten the parent, and the sense of inadequacy in the parent-child relationship may begin to increase.This category is very important for organized education programs.Because as the person receives information about the subject he/she is afraid of, uncertainty will disappear, and fear will decrease.Therefore, parents of a gifted child should be educated about their child's characteristics, educational needs, developmental differences, and socio-emotional problems.
• Believing that they are raising a child who will benefit society will make the parent feel under great pressure.
If they adopt a wrong attitude, they may think that they will harm both their child and the society.Gifted children are special and can benefit society, but this is not a necessity.Changing this myth that families have while raising their children can make both the child and the family more peaceful and happy.For this reason, it is thought that it is necessary to have information that will reduce this pressure on the family in the organized training programs.
• When the self-development of the individual is perceived as an obligatory process, it can be thought that the family has an intense need for educational opportunities, but if they cannot receive this education, they will feel quite inadequate.Therefore, differentiation should be made in the education of gifted children, and special topics should be included in the education of their parents.One of these topics should be about how to cope with the feeling of inadequacy.

•
In the category of meeting needs as a process, parents produced metaphors about some of their children's needs.Although these metaphors do not seem to be negative, they may turn into negative ones if the needs cannot be met.It may cause the parent to feel unhappy and tense.For this purpose, it is recommended to support families individually regarding children's needs and to raise awareness about real needs.

•
The category of fun and new discovery process was the most hopeful and positive category of the study, but it had the lowest frequency value.This result suggests that more focus was placed on the challenging aspects of raising a child with gifted The reason for focusing on this aspect may be the uncertainties in the process and the lack of sufficient education regarding giftedness.Therefore, an educational program based on the findings of this research can contribute to the happiness of families and the healthy development of their children.
The study has certain limitations.These limitations include a small sample size of parents, the inclusion of only parents with 6-year-old children, and the study being conducted in a single city.It is recommended to pay attention to these limitations in future studies.

Table 1 .
Metaphors related to raising a gifted and talented child

Table 2 .
Raising gifted children as a process requiring effort, care and patience

Table 3 .
Raising gifted and talented children as a challenging process

Table 4 .
Raising gifted and talented children as a process of raising children to benefit society

Table 5 .
Raising gifted children as a process requiring effort, care, and patience, and talented children as a process that requires the individual to develop himself/herself

Table 6 .
Raising gifted and talented children as a process of meeting needs

Table 7 .
Raising gifted and talented children as a process of fun and discovery