Psychology: what is a “zebra” person?

The “zebra” refers to a psychological profile “with high potential”. This notion would come from an analogy with the striped animal: zebras are species difficult to tame and identifythey blend into the decor while distinguishing themselves from this decor by characteristics specific to each of them (in this case their stripes), estimates the professional who introduced this term in the early 2000s, Jeanne Siaud Facchin, clinical psychologist, psychotherapist, author of the book “Too smart to be happy: the gifted adult” (Ed. Odile Jacob) and founder of the Zebra Alternative Association. Concretely, what is a “zebra” person? How do you know if you are a “zebra”?

What are the characteristics of a zebra person?

The zebra profile is defined through very specific psychological characteristics. To qualify as a “zebra”, the person must have:

• High intelligence: his IQ is equal to or greater than 130
• An exacerbated sensitivity, that is to say an high emotional intelligence

This term is not a scientific term and does not appear in official classifications. It is mainly used in everyday language.

Not quite the same as HPI

A zebra person is not quite the same thing as a HPI (high intellectual potential) person in that they feel relatively adapted to their environment and the society in which they live. “Most often, a person with HPI will feel no more lag with its environment“, explains Dana Castro, psychologist.

“To my knowledge, there is no specific official test to diagnose “zebra” profiles. Generally, we use tests like the PAPI. This personality test is mainly carried out in the context of work“, specifies the expert.

Are there any negative points about being a “zebra”?

“In my experience, I have seen lots of “zebra” people who felt in tune with their profile and who did not suffer from it at all. Others, on the other hand, suffered from their hypersensitivity and constantly saw themselves in a negative way. This is due to the influence of their environment which could sometimes format them negativelybully them in their emotions or impose a certain way of thinking on them“, raises Dana Castro.

Generally, zebra people are very efficient in a company and have instead a manager profile. In positions that correspond to them, zebra profiles are real assets in the company thanks to their extraordinary abilities. “They know how to analyze situations, understand non-verbalhave an eye for detail, be reactive and quickly move forward with a project because they have a way of thinking that allows them to deal with several things at once“, lists our interlocutor.

“Difficult to know precisely. We can hypothesize that the “zebra”, thanks to its developed emotional intelligence, is someone of reassuring, solid and enveloping to the extent that he is able to put himself in his partner’s place, understand him and listen to him“, interprets Dana Castro.