?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.title=Gifted+young+adolescents+%3A+voices+of+self&rft.creator=Dillon%2C+Lisette+Helen&rft.subject=dialogical+self%2C+email+journals%2C+gifted+young+adolescents%2C+listening%2C+voices%2C+ODTA&rft.description=Despite+the+challenges+that+giftedness+can+add+to+self-formation+during+early+adolescence%2C+gifted+young+adolescents+seldom+are+asked+about+their+lives+outside+of+counselling+and+educational+contexts.+The+study+considers+the+complexities+that+face+gifted+young+adolescents+in+the+process+of+self-discovery+and+self-representation%2C+thereby+building+a+case+for+seeking+their+own+viewpoints.+A+guiding+assumption+for+the+study+was+that+gifted+young+adolescents+may+respond+positively+to+the+opportunity+to+share+their+own+perspectives+and+their+own+versions+of+%E2%80%9Cwho+they+are%E2%80%9D.+The+theoretical+underpinnings+for+this+study+drew+from+Dialogical+Self+Theory.+The+study+resides+within+an+interactive+view+of+self+as+a+dynamic+construction+rather+than+a+static+state%2C+where+%E2%80%9Cwho+we+are%E2%80%9D+is+formed+in+everyday+exchanges+with+self+and+others.+Self-making+as+a+process+among+gifted+young+adolescents+is+presented+as+an+interactive+network+of+%E2%80%9CI%E2%80%9D+voices+interpreted+to+reflect+internal+and+external+dialogue.+In+this+way%2C+self+is+understood+within+dialogical+concepts+of+voices+as+multiple+expressions.+The+study+invited+twelve+gifted+young+adolescents+to+write+freely+about+themselves+over+a+six+month+period+in+an+email+journal+project.+Participants+were+recruited+online+and+by+word-of-mouth+and+they+were+able+to+negotiate+their+own+levels+of+involvement.+Access+to+the+lives+of+individual+young+adolescents+was+sought+in+an+out-of-school+setting+using+narrative+methods+of+personal+writing+in+the+form+of+journals+sent+as+emails+to+the+researcher.+The+role+of+the+researcher+was+to+act+as+a+supportive+listener+who+responded+to+participant-led+emails+and+thereby+facilitated+the+process+of+authoring+that+occurred+across+the+data-gathering+phase.+The+listening+process+involved+responses+that+were+affirming+and+designed+to+build+trust.+Data+in+the+form+of+email+texts+were+analysed+using+a+close+listening+method+that+uncovered+patterns+of+voices+that+were+explicitly+or+subtly+expressed+by+participants.+The+interpretation+of+voices+highlighted+the+tensions+and+contradictions+involved+in+the+process+of+participants+forming+a+%E2%80%9Cself%E2%80%9D+that+emerged+as+multiple+%E2%80%9CI%E2%80%9D+voices.+There+were+three+key+findings+of+the+study.+First%2C+the+gifted+young+adolescent+participants+each+constructed+a+self+around+four+key+voices+of+Author%2C+Achiever%2C+Resistor%2FCo-operator+and+Self-Innovator.+These+voices+were+dialogical+selfconstructions+that+showed+multiplicity+as+a+normal+way+of+being.+Second%2C+the+selfmaking+processes+of+the+gifted+young+adolescent+participants+were+guided+by+a+hierarchy+of+voices+that+were+directed+through+self-awareness.+Third%2C+authoring+in+association+with+a+responsive+adult+listener+emerged+as+a+dialogic+space+for+promoting+self-awareness+and+a+language+of+self-expression+among+gifted+young+adolescents.+The+findings+of+the+study+contribute+to+knowledge+about+gifted+young+adolescents+by+presenting+their+own+versions+of+%E2%80%9Cwho%E2%80%9D+they+are%2C+perspectives+that+might+differ+from+mainstream+perceptions.+Participants+were+shown+to+have+highly+diverse%2C+complex+and+individual+expressions+that+have+implications+for+how+well+they+are+understood+and+supported+by+others.+The+use+of+email+journals+helped+to+create+a+synergy+for+self-disclosure+and+a+safe+space+for+self-expression+where+participants%E2%80%99+abilities+to+be+themselves+were+encouraged.+Increased+self-awareness+and+selfknowledge+among+gifted+young+adolescents+is+vital+to+their+self-formation+and+their+management+of+self+and+others%E2%80%99+expectations.+This+study+makes+an+original+contribution+to+the+field+of+self-study+by+highlighting+the+processes+and+complexities+of+young+adolescents%E2%80%99+self-constructions.+Through+the+innovative+use+of+narrative+methods+and+an+inter-disciplinary+approach%2C+the+voices+of+gifted+young+adolescents+were+privileged.+At+a+practical+level%2C+the+study+can+inform+educators%2C+policy-makers%2C+parents+and+all+those+who+seek+to+contribute+to+the+well-being+of+gifted+young+adolescents.&rft.publisher=Queensland+University+of+Technology&rft.date=2011&rft.type=Thesis&rft.format=application%2Fpdf&rft.relation=https%3A%2F%2Feprints.qut.edu.au%2F43399%2F1%2FLisette_Dillon_Thesis.pdf&rft.rights=free_to_read&rft.relation=Dillon%2C+Lisette+Helen+(2011)+Gifted+young+adolescents+%3A+voices+of+self.+PhD+thesis%2C+Queensland+University+of+Technology.&rft.id_number=https%3A%2F%2Feprints.qut.edu.au%2F43399%2F&rft.identifier=Faculty+of+Education%3B+Office+of+Education+Research