Furthermore, smart kids tend to hang by themselves when placed with age-peers so they are not part of a group and thus are not protected or welcomed by their relations with the kids' friends. Thus high achievement is associated with unpopular kids.
I think this is an unfair stereotype. Some smart kids do this, just as some ND kids tend to hang by themselves. But many smart kids are highly social and quite well-liked, even by same-age peers. I was GT as a kid, and I had friends in virtually all social circles in my school. Were they all my bestest friends? No. But I could talk with anyone, and I was well-accepted by jocks, nerds, drama geeks, and even the student council socialites. I know I'm not the only one out there like this! I've seen kids who do great socially and are GT. I think it has more to do with personality and less to do with intelligence. I just don't think this stereotype holds water.
And I'd argue that smart adults tend to do pretty well in life, too. No guarantees, of course. There are lots of factors contributing to success. But it gets harder to get by on "popularity" (whatever that is) once you hit the real world, so actual skills and intelligence tend to make for a better chance of success in life.
I'm just not quite buying it...
