I would agree that skewed perspective is a significant contributing factor. I grew up in a community that was heavily over-selected for presumptive high-IQ individuals (judging by the percentage of PhDs, MDs, JDs, college professors, patent-holders, and national academic & professional award-winners among the parents of my friends). The kid whose social role in our peer group was that of the sweet-but-none-too-bright kid graduated from a selective four-year college. It was not unusual for peer group members to enroll at the flagship state uni instead of elite private universities, because, well, it doesn't matter where you go to undergrad, just where you get your terminal (real) post-grad degree. Until I entered my current profession, where I measure it regularly, I really had no idea what normative intelligence looked like.
And gifted kids are still kids. There are still many who will take the path of least resistance, whether that means skating through academics, quietly daydreaming through boredom, or disguising abilities in an attempt to fit in socially.
Help them to feel loved, valued, and secure as human beings, without conditions associated with performance or accomplishment, and you will have laid the foundation for them to explore and discover their talents and interests, in their own time.
