In episode 5, Chris and Emma were joined by Dr. R. Frank Falk, who has been dealing with the construct of overexcitability as a researcher for more than 40 years. Frank talked about his work with the original Overexcitability Questionnaire (OEQ) and the subsequent development of the Overexcitability Questionnaire-Two (OEQ-II). We discussed the challenges of researching OE and the effort that Chris and Frank are making to rectify misunderstandings about Dąbrowski’s theory in the gifted community.
Resources mentioned during this episode:
Developmental Potential by Michael M. Piechowski (this is the chapter Frank mentioned from New Voices in Counseling the Gifted).
Most of the research on overexcitabilities can be found in this repository on the OSF website: Research on Dabrowski’s Theory of Positive Disintegration.
The Origins and Conceptual Evolution of Overexcitability by Wells & Falk. (Click here to access the article from the journal’s website.)
Reexamining Overexcitability: A Framework for Understanding Intense Experience by Piechowski & Wells.
Bill Tillier’s website: positivedisintegration.com.
Mellow Out by Michael M. Piechowski.
Living with Intensity by Daniels & Piechowski.
Gifted Development Center website (for more about the OEQ-II).
The Dabrowski Newsletter we mentioned can be found in the materials available for download from Bill’s website (for a fee).
The two special issues of Roeper Review co-edited by Cheryl Ackerman: Vol. 31 (2) and Vol. 31 (3).
Frank’s work can also be found on ResearchGate.
* A transcript of this episode is available on the Dabrowski Center website.
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Researching Overexcitability