Double Exceptionality: what it is and how it affects children.

Let's look at what is double exceptionality, its main types, and how it affects people.

There are several children who have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or dyslexia, among others, and at the same time have high intellectual abilities; in this case it is a double exceptionality.

The double exceptionality refers to those cases in which a child presents together with high capacities the diagnosis of some disorder, so it requires an adaptation in the school context according to their abilities, so that they could develop their full potential.

However, it is difficult firstly because there are not enough studies on the subject and in many cases the double exceptionality is not diagnosed, but only one of the two exceptionalities is detected, being in a minority the high abilities.

In this article we will explore the concept of double exceptionalities and also discuss some of the most common examples in which it occurs.

What is double exceptionality?

The double exceptionality is based on cases in which a child with some diagnosis (for example, ADHD) possesses at the same time high capacities at intellectual level.Therefore, when they occur together, they promote a greater complexity when making both diagnoses.

High intellectual abilities are a series of exceptional aptitudes that perform in one or several areas of knowledge or also in one or several functions at a cognitive level that allow the individual who presents them to achieve high performance and also a high degree of motivation in the tasks they perform. These individuals with double exceptionality in the academic context are also known as "2e learners", being twice-exceptional learners.

Unfortunately, it is often the case that high intellectual abilities end up being overshadowed by other educational needsWhether due to ADHD, ASD or any other cause, this is one of the reasons why the detection of these cases is extremely difficult.

On the other hand, the double exceptionality needs a greater number of in-depth investigations given its complexity so that instruments can be developed for its evaluation, detection and diagnosis with the greatest possible efficiency.

Most common types of double exceptionality

The following are the most frequent combinations.

ADHD and high abilities

This double exceptionality occurs when a child who possesses high intellectual abilities has also been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

ADHD is quite common, so cases in which a person with adhd has cases in which a person possesses high intellectual abilities along with a diagnosis of ADHD may be the most common.within the double exceptionality. However, there are still few cases identified, although attention and research in this field have increased, although there are still not enough cases to have sufficient scientific support and to be included in the official diagnostic manuals.

On the other hand, in these cases of double exceptionality, when there is simultaneity, the high cognitive abilities could camouflage the attention deficit, just as the opposite situation could occur in which the attention deficit would prevent the full manifestation of these high intellectual abilities.

In investigations carried out with cases of double exceptionality, in which high intellectual abilities and ADHD were present at the same time, it could be observed that thehe students possessed a wide variety of interests, high creativity, great verbal fluency and above average verbal reasoning; on the other hand, they also possessed traits of impulsivity, hyperactivity and attention deficit.On the other hand, they also possessed traits of impulsivity, hyperactivity and attention deficit.

It should be noted that a series of characteristics were found in this type of cases of double exceptionality:

• Being very critical of oneself.
• Impatience.
• Easily bored with routine tasks.
• Low tolerance to failure.
• Dominance.
• Inappropriate humor at certain times.
• Not much enjoyment of company.
• Difficulty focusing on new areas of interest.
• Poor attention to detail.
• Emotional reactions somewhat excessive at certain times.
• Diachrony between high intelligence and their emotional and social maturity.

It should be noted that people with this double exceptionality may have a lower academic performance than they should, given their high learning potential, as well as some difficulties in the social sphere, so that they may find it difficult to integrate socially with their schoolmates.Given their high learning potential, they may also have certain difficulties in the social sphere, so that it would be difficult for them to integrate socially with their schoolmates.

On the other hand, there are a number of advantages that these children have over other children with ADHD, who usually find it difficult to concentrate on a task to be productive, while children with this double exceptionality are usually able to focus on a series of stimuli that motivate them and thus can have a better understanding, and therefore greater learning, and is that these children can more effectively control their attention towards stimuli that cause them to be interested and motivated in the and allow them to be motivated in the task they perform.

Dyslexia and high abilities

Another existing double exceptionality is the one that occurs when a person with dyslexia has high intellectual abilities.

Due to the difficulty in detecting this double exceptionality because of the scarcity of resources and information on the subject, it is frequent that only one of the two exceptionalities is found because the other one is masked.. And this can occur in several ways, for example, when it is discovered that the child has high intellectual abilities but his academic performance is not in accordance with these abilities due to certain difficulties caused by dyslexia; on the other hand, when it is not detected, his low performance is attributed to lack of motivation, low self-esteem, etc.

The opposite may also be the case, in which the child has been diagnosed with a learning disability and this has masked his or her high intellectual abilities because he or she has not been assessed in the correct way or, on the other hand, the child may not receive the attention at the school level that he or she needs, the child may not be receiving the attention at the school level that he or she needs due to the mutual due to the mutual masking that exists between the two exceptionalities, so that neither has been detected.

Asperger syndrome and high abilities.

This is a case of double exceptionality that occurs when a child presents simultaneously high intellectual abilities together with the diagnosis of Asperger syndrome (DSM-IV-TR), classified in the DSM-5 within the Autism Spectrum Disorders.

This double exceptionality demands in the field of research the study of the impact that the difficulties presented by people with Asperger syndrome could have on the high intellectual abilities that they possess, as well as the help that these high abilities could provide in the social environment of these people.

Due to the lack of empirical studies in this regard, There is a lack of knowledge in the field of this double exceptionality and how it could influence in different areas of the life of these people (academic, behavioral, health, social, etc.). (academic, behavioral, mental health, social, etc.).

It could also be the case that one of the exceptionalities masks the other or even that they both mask each other, so that neither of them is detected, as it happens in cases where the double exceptionality occurs with ADHD or dyslexia.

Some research on this double exceptionality found that during the student stage these individuals tended to report feelings of ineffectiveness at the school level; however, these children were able to compensate for these feelings by using their strengths, while at the same time being able to solve the difficulties that might appear. This was achieved through problem-solving strategies that they were able to carry out in different contexts.

These students were able to demonstrate their high intellectual capacities through their high abilities and skills with respect to some topic that had aroused much interest in them, so that they had become experts and mastered them to uncommon levels. These high abilities also made it possible for these students with double exceptionality to adapt more easily to the social context thanks to their high level of verbal intelligence, among others.among others. However, more research is still needed in this regard, as with other types of double exceptionality.

As we can see, despite the scarcity of information and research on double exceptionality, there have been several cases that have been detected that show that it is a reality, so more research is needed to help these people and their families, so that their children have at their disposal the necessary resources to meet their needs at the academic level; on the contrary, otherwise, it is likely that there will continue to be numerous cases of children who are not receiving adequate attention and this will result in school failure.