Underachievement Risks and Profiles of Psychological Variables Among High-Ability Adolescents from Hong Kong, The Netherlands, Taiwan, and The United Kingdom.

Abstract

Background: High-ability students, despite their potential, may underachieve academically. The existing literature suggests the presence of subtypes, such as perfectionistic or creative high-ability students, who underachieve for different reasons. However, empirical work identifying these profiles and linking them to underachievement remains limited.

Methods: We analyzed self-reported data by 930 high-ability adolescents across Hong Kong, the Netherlands, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom. We conducted a pre-registered confirmatory latent profile analysis on five dispositions theoretically relevant to underachievement: creativity, academic self-efficacy, self-regulation, perfectionistic standards, and self-criticism. We examined how these profiles related to underachievement risk, measured by academic performance and self-perceived underachievement.

Results: Four profiles emerged. Two aligned with underachievement-related theories, namely the "self-satisfied" profile (low self-criticism, high self-regulation and creativity; prevalent in Asia) and the "maladaptively perfectionistic" profile (high self-criticism but low creativity, academic self-efficacy, and self-regulation; prevalent in Western Europe). Academic performance did not differ across profiles. However, adolescents in the "self-satisfied" profile were less likely to self-perceive as underachievers, while those in the "maladaptively perfectionistic" group were more likely. Interestingly, self-perception as underachievers in both profiles was positively linked with academic performance.

Conclusions: These findings provide empirical evidence on subtypes among high-ability students that may differentially present underachieving risks.