ABSTRACT
In 1904, as the notion of objectively measuring intelligence was taking shape across Western society, Spearman postulated a near perfect correlation between general intelligence and the capacity to discriminate sensory stimuli. Spearman’s postulation can be traced back to Galton, who claimed that individuals with higher levels of cognitive abilities are more capable of accurate sensory discrimination and are more emotional than individuals with lower levels of cognitive abilities. This chapter provides an overview of what is known regarding the notions of sensory sensitivity and emotional intensity with a particular focus on how these are experienced by intellectually gifted individuals. It also provides a discussion of sensory discrimination and its relation to general intelligence. Intellectually gifted individuals may be more sensitive to and more easily affected by environmental stimuli than others, but most of the evidence for this claim is anecdotal or clinical.
