In this commentary, the authors contend that Persson's (2012a) paper, Cultural Variation and Dominance in a Globalised Knowledge-Economy: Towards a Culture-Sensitive Research Paradigm in the Science of Giftedness, lacks conciseness in defining the connections between the significance of cultural dominance and the definition of giftedness. However,…

In this commentary, the author finds that the target article, "Cultural Variation and Dominance in a Globalised Knowledge-Economy: Towards a Culture-Sensitive Research Paradigm in the Science of Giftedness", has three substantial failures: (1) an unproven, even incorrect assumption about the existence of bias in the "science of giftedness" due to…

Persson's (2012a) article is concerned with giftedness research in the light of cultural bias with a view to cultural dominance that derives from ethnocentricity. He questions the validity of current research that appears to ignore or sidestep cultural difference and proposes that an agenda for amelioration of such bias lies in greater awareness…

Persson's (2012a) article offers a timely contribution to the science of giftedness through questioning the validity of research emerging from within this paradigm. Using evidence from a number of disciplines he demonstrates that what is regarded as gifted behaviour in one culture could be regarded as quite ordinary within another. He therefore…

The author finds the target article "Cultural Variation and Dominance in a Globalised Knowledge Economy" to be a thoughtful exploration of an important topic for all social scientists, certainly including those who study gifted development and education. Roland S. Persson (2012a) raises many questions about policy and practice in giftedness…

Roland S. Persson's (2012a) argument is that there is a dominant research culture in the field of gifts and talents, which must of necessity distort research and practice in cultures which are different. He ties this to the dominance of the global economy and points to the need for more cross-cultural studies. In this commentary, the author points…

The author finds Roland S. Persson's (2012a) paper to be timely, fascinating, important and powerful. At risk of mixing metaphors, it provides much food for thought and a penetrating lens through which all those vested in the optimal realisation of human potential would be prudent to review their own perceptions, boundaries of belief and…

The author recognises the fact that knowledge of cultural diversity and its implications is growing in the field of giftedness research and practice. In some ways, the target article could therefore be considered "old news." The author contends that his effort to address culture variation and its problematic impact on research, however, is not to…

Responds to R. E. Erard's comments on the current authors' original article which reviewed a number of studies that identified cultural differences in the use and effect of different types of social support among Asians and Asian Americans and European Americans. Essentially, in his comment, Erard denied the validity of research examining cultural…

In this issue's "Ethical Challenges" column, commentators share their views of how evaluators might respond to specific problematic situations, linking their analyses to the principles and standards they believe are most relevant to the case. Not surprisingly, the perspectives that commentators offer are not always in agreement. When…

A Chicana ethnographer working in a Latino community describes her multiple identities and ways that she as a "native" researcher was co-opted by the dominant culture. She challenges researchers from dominant, as well as marginalized cultures, to recognize their own complicity and form new identities as citizens-scholars-activists rooted…

Rejoinders to the preceding commentaries include "Who Claims Holland's Hexagon Is Perfect?" (Prediger, Vansickle); "Comments on the Universality of Holland's Theory" (Fouad, Dancer); and "In Search of Structural Validity" (Swanson). (SK)

Discusses general issues relevant to the use of measures in diverse populations. Describes the ideal strategy for developing a measure of underlying constructs. Describes the relevance of an examination of measurement equivalence in developing a measure for use in diverse populations and key issues to be addressed in measure development. (KB)

This paper deals with the way in which human beings use time, the conceptualization of which is a significant part of the interaction of all human beings and the study of which is particularly significant in the analysis of intercultural communication. The cultural values of the division of time into seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months,…

Discusses major methodological advances of the past 20 years within social anthropology. The advances fall into three broad areas: comparative studies and large-scale multicultural and holocultural investigations; cognitive anthropology, encompassing formal analysis and decision processes; and studies of intracultural diversity. (Author/KC)