Approche systémique des rumeurs à l’adolescence. Le haut potentiel : facteur de vulnérabilité ou facteur de protection ?

Introduction

In this article, we focus on the experiences of gifted adolescents who are victims of bullying in the form of rumors. How do they experience this relational aggression and this social isolation when belonging to a peer network is essential at this age? Are they more vulnerable or more resilient? A systemic perspective led us to consider all the factors within these perpetrator-victim-management team systems that are involved in the rumor spreading.

Patients and method

We conducted a qualitative study of three situations based on Lazarus and Folkman's transactional model to analyze the processes at work within each system in the rumor spreading.

Results

The results show that the teenager who spreads the rumor does so in the name of his or her anti-violence values, without considering the context in which the events took place and the subjective experience of the protagonists. It is also a way for him or her to establish his or her popularity within the group. Each of the three gifted boys reacted differently. Struggling to identify the roles of victim and perpetrator, the institution administrator did not perceive the situation as a case of bullying and may even have credited the rumor.

Discussion

Our discussion focuses on the personal and family factors of the population in this study, the current societal context with the MeToo movement and the cancel culture, and the limitations of school-based anti-bullying interventions. These three studies show the need to alert and inform education professionals to a systemic understanding when it comes to the spreading of these rumors in adolescence. These acquired skills will then allow them to be more efficient as mediators in these situations, sometimes with dramatic consequences for vulnerable individuals.

Conclusion

Giftedness appears as a secondary characteristic compared to emotional competencies. Nevertheless, certain personality traits often observed in gifted subjects, such as overexcitability or a particular sense of humor, are active in transactions between the different systems.