Shane N. Phillipson, PhD, is Associate Professor and Associate Dean in the Faculty of Education at Monash University, Australia and previously at the Hong Kong Institute of Education.

Heidrun Stoeger, PhD, is Chair Professor of Educational Sciences (School Research, School Development, and Evaluation) at Regensburg University, Germany. She is Vice President of the International Research Association for Talent Development and Excellence (IRATDE) and Editor-in-Chief of High Ability Studies.

Albert Ziegler, PhD, is the Secretary General of the International Research Association for Talent Development and Excellence (IRATDE). He is Chair Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and Editor-in-Chief of Talent Development & Excellence.

Using the actiotope model of giftedness to integrate a broad range of research, this innovative book features a number of chapters written by internationally recognised scholars in a frank and lively discussion about the origins of exceptionality in students from East Asia. With the actiotope model as the theoretical framework, the book distinguishes between trait models of giftedness and systems approaches to exceptionality. Breaking new ground in understanding the complex interactions between a learner's environment, goals, intelligence and motivations in the development of their ever-expanding knowledge and skill set, this book is essential reading for scholars, undergraduate and postgraduate students interested in the psychological and social basis of exceptionality.

List of contributors Foreword Preface 1. The actiotope model of giftedness: An introduction to some central theoretical assumptions 2. Talent Development as Adaption: The Role of Educational and Learning Capital 3. Confucianism, learning self-concept and the development of exceptionality 4. Pathways to Artistic Giftedness: Developmental Theory as a Complement to the Actiotope Model of Giftedness 5. Chinese Students and Mathematical Problem Solving: An Application of the Actiotope Model of Giftedness 6. Intelligence and academic achievement - with a focus on the actiotope model of giftedness 7. Goal orientations and the development of subjective action space in Chinese students 8. Social-emotional development of Chinese gifted students: A review based within the actiotope model of giftedness 9. The 'Tiger Mother' factor: Curriculum, schooling and mentoring of Asian students in an Australian context 10. Parental involvement within the actiotope model of giftedness: What it means for East-Asian students 11. Support-oriented identification of gifted students in East Asia according to the actiotope model of giftedness 12. Twice-exceptional students with deafness or hard-of-hearing and giftedness 13. Gifted education policy and the development of exceptionality: A Hong Kong perspective 14. The gifted and talented and effective learning: A Focus on the actiotope model of giftedness in the Asian context