self-fulfilling prophecy

Examples of self-fulfilling prophecy in the following topics:

• Teachers' Expectations

  • This is a case of a self-fulfilling prophecy, or the Pygmalion effect.
  • The Pygmalion effect is a form of self-fulfilling prophecy, and, in this respect, people will internalize their negative label, and those with positive labels succeed accordingly.
  • Rosenthal posited that biased expectancies can essentially affect reality and create self-fulfilling prophecies as a result.
  • Research on the stereotype threat has shown that gender stereotypes decrease the mathematical self-esteem of many female students, and that this lack of academic confidence leads to anxiety and poorer performance on math exams.

• Ray Rist's Research

  • In his 1970 article, "Student Social Class and Teachers' Expectations: The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy of Ghetto Education," Ray Rist observed an African American classroom with an African American teacher.

• The Labeling Approach

  • The theory is concerned with how the self-identity and behavior of individuals may be determined or influenced by the terms used to describe or classify them.
  • It is associated with the concepts of self-fulfilling prophecy and stereotyping .
  • Certain expectations are placed on these individuals and, over time, they unconsciously change their behavior to fulfill them.
  • Criteria for different mental illnesses, he believed, are not consistently fulfilled by those who are diagnosed with them because all of these people suffer from the same disorder.
  • Criteria are simply fulfilled because the "mentally ill" believe they are supposed to act a certain way—over time, they come to do so.

• Causes of Banking Crises

  • There is a profound truth to this, creating an interdependent and potentially self-fulfilling investment thought process.
  • As the market falls, investors create a positive feedback loop and self-fulfilling prophecy due to a lack of confidence that drives it down even further.

• Cultural and Societal Influences on Child Development

  • American children raised by authoritative parents tend to have high self-esteem and social skills.
  • Importantly, stereotype threat has been shown to be something of a self-fulfilling prophecy—not because the negative stereotype is accurate, but because fear of fulfilling that stereotype can lead to additional anxiety, which in turn can reduce performance.

• Labeling Theory

  • The theory is concerned with how the self-identity and the behavior of individuals may be determined or influenced by the terms used to describe or classify them.
  • George Herbert Mead posited that the self is socially constructed and reconstructed through the interactions which each person has with the community.
  • They become a self-fulfilling prophecy: an individual who is labeled has little choice but to conform to the essential meaning of that judgment.

• How Culture and Society Impact the Elderly

  • The stereotypes, discrimination, and devaluing of the elderly seen in ageism can have significant effects on the elderly, affecting their self-esteem, emotional well-being, and behavior.
  • Studies have also specifically shown that when older people hear these stereotypes about their supposed incompetence and uselessness, they perform worse on measures of competence and memory; in effect, these stereotypes become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

• The Intellectually Gifted

  • This may lead them to feel self-conscious about being different or to be bullied by their peers.
  • By labeling some children as "gifted" and others as "not gifted," schools can create a self-fulfilling prophecy where those who are not accepted into the program do not perform as well as those who are accepted.

• Arguments For and Against Inflation Targeting Policy Interventions

  • Further, the public's expectations about inflation tend to be a self-fulfilling prophecy.

• Research Examples

  • Kohn found that lower class parents were more likely to emphasize conformity in their children whereas middle-class parents were more likely to emphasize creativity and self-reliance.
  • Ellis et. al. proposed and found that parents value conformity over self-reliance in children to the extent that conformity superseded self-reliance as a criterion for success in their own endeavors.
  • Finally, the retirement home community encouraged a culture of life and fulfillment in part to counter-act the frequency of death.
  • In other words, tracks can turn into a type of self-fulfilling prophecy: you may start out at the same level as someone in a higher track, but by the time you have completed the lower track you will have become like the other students in your track.