Depression: A psychological state marked by feelings of sadness, worthlessness, impotence, and incapacity. Untreated severe depression can have fatal consequences. (Klein & Wender 1993)
Research argues that gifted children are no less likely to suffer from depression than any other child. The same things that could cause any child to become depressed could cause a gifted child to be depressed. However, research does support that gifted children are likely to become depressed for reasons that may not affect the average child.
Although there are conflicting opinions and evidence concerning depression in the gifted population, there is clinical evidence that depression can be an insidious and even fatal influence in the lives of some gifted people (Barkett 2002, Claridge, Pryor & Watkins 1998. Jackson 1998, Tolan 1998). There is also evidence that many highly gifted and talented people throughout history suffered from various forms of clinical depression.