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The following statement may help to solidify some of the loosely coupled ideas that have gone before: a ubiquitous characteristic of artistically talented individuals, which may be more or less shared by others who are lacking in specific gifts, is a resistance to certain kinds of group judgments. This is largely in the area of values, particularly æsthetic values, where questions of illusion and the standardization of subjective choice and preference produce a special tension between the cognitive experience derived from cultural pressures and the perceptual experience of the individual. In resolving these problems, there is a spectrum of cognitive styles forming a continuum from the artist, who prefers to see polyvalent illusory possibilities in the phenomena that are at variance with conventional interpretations, to the literal-minded, practical 'realist'. The artist insists upon seeing conventional standards as the illusion of the majority. This characteristic also contributes to the quality of exceptionalism
found in so many talented individuals. Though appearing to be based on principle, this may well be a rationalization that conceals its obligatory aspects. The stand against influence of conventional illusions often needs to be sustained by resistance to seeking or registering factual details of the environment.