Psychology Behind Self-Fulfilling Prophecies

You may have heard someone say, “If you believe it will happen, it probably will.” That is a great saying that plays off an interesting psychological concept called a self-fulfilling prophecy. The idea that your expectations can be a determining factor in how something works out is powerful. Let’s make it simple: a self-fulfilling prophecy is when a person’s expectation or belief about something triggers that expectation or belief to come true, often without the person even recognizing it.

But how does this work? What can psychology say about self-fulfilling prophecies and our expectations and concepts concerning the outside world? We are here going to simplify and make the psychology of self-fulfilling prophecies easy to understand so you can see how your thoughts may govern your life.

What is a Self-Fulfilling Prophecy?

When an initial belief or expectation leads to conduct that fulfils the expectation, it is called a self-fulfilling prophecy. It acts like a feedback loop in which your thoughts find their course of direction for action, which then brings about the manifestation. It’s like sowing a belief in your mind and then acting in such a manner that nourishes it and allows it to sprout into reality.

Let us take Sarah as an example. She is a student who believes that she is not so good at arithmetic. She does not study a lot since she believes that she will not pass the arithmetic test and sees no particular reason to study. I’m going to flunk, however. She thinks she doesn’t know much about math, and when the exam rolls around, she fails. In this scenario, Sarah’s belief that she would flunk became a reality when she engaged in behaviours such as skipping school and failing.

The fascinating thing is that, if she had prepared, she would have probably gone well, even proved her opinion wrong. That is the harvest of what her actions sowed since she believed she was to fail. A self-fulfilling prophecy functions this way: your beliefs influence your behaviour, which then goes on to influence the result.

How Do Self-Fulfilling Prophecies Work?

Psychologists explain self-fulfilling prophecies as a cycle of thought, behaviour, and result. Here’s a simple breakdown of how the cycle works:

1. Belief or Expectation: The process starts when you have a belief or expectation about something. This could be a belief about yourself (“I’m not good at public speaking”) or a belief about someone else (“This person won’t like me”).
2. Behaviour: Based on your belief, you unconsciously change your behaviour. For instance, if you believe you’ll fail at something, you might not try as hard, or if you think someone won’t like you, you might act distant or unfriendly.
3. Result or Outcome: Because of your behaviour, the outcome aligns with your initial belief. For example, you might not do well on a task because you didn’t prepare properly, or you might push someone away because of your unfriendly behaviour.
4. Confirmation of Belief: The outcome confirms your original belief, making you more convinced that you were right all along.

This cycle continues until the belief becomes firmly rooted in your mind. What’s powerful about this is that the belief or expectation can be positive or negative, and it can influence outcomes in either direction.

Positive Self-Fulfilling Prophecies

Not all fulfilled prophecies are bad. A good event results from good expectations, just as a poor event results from poor expectations. Assume an athlete believes he is going to perform well in an upcoming competition. He would train more intensely and pay more attention due to this belief. He succeeded, and his confidence improved. In such a case, belief resulted in success.

Negative Self-Fulfilling Prophecies

Poor expectations can also lead to poor outcomes. This was demonstrated by Sarah who made herself believe that she was going to fail her arithmetic test. If you think that something nasty will happen, you will do things that make it possible for the nasty thing to happen. For example, one who thinks that he or she is unlikable may avoid social activities, and this behaviour may end up being rejected or lonely and thus verify the initial belief.

Why Do Self-Fulfilling Prophecies Happen?

You might be wondering, “Why do we behave in ways that make our beliefs come true, even if those beliefs are wrong?”. The answer lies in several psychological factors that influence our thoughts, actions, and perceptions.

Expectations Shape Our Behaviour

Self-fulfilling prophecies can occur because our expectations influence our behaviour. Even if you are not conscious of it, your behaviours often act to your expectations when something is expected to happen. For example, you may not even do your chores with the same enthusiasm when you perceive that it is a terrible day at work. You might be snappish at very minor inconveniences more often, which also validates your perception that the day isn’t going too well. In this way then, both your behaviour and your mood are influenced by the expectation that it will be a lousy day, and so you realize what you’ve been saying you’d do.

According to Psychologist Shweta Badguja, Since childhood, we have come across various Cultures and Modalities. These diverse perceptions allow us to think and believe in different ways. As we grow up, our belief system becomes consolidated and it starts framing and shaping our Behaviour. This behaviour can be seen in an individual, holistically. Beliefs can help understand what has been running for ages and can also influence the way someone behaves in a situation based on preconceptions.

Read More: The Psychology Behind Manifestation

Social Influence and Expectations

Even social environments can precipitate self-fulfilling prophecies whereby the expectation of others may affect our behaviour. Such phenomena are aptly named the Pygmalion effect or the Rosenthal effect because they are often described based on research that demonstrates how teachers’ expectations of their pupils could affect the latter’s performance. In a classic experiment, researchers informed teachers that, based on test scores, some kids should do better academically (even though these students were randomly selected). The professors gave the pupils different attention, encouragement, and support because they felt they were more capable. And those pupils proceeded to beat the teachers’ expectations, as evidenced by their changed performance.

Confirmation Bias

One of the major contributors to self-fulfilling prophecies is confirmation bias. This can be defined as a psychological tendency to look for information that confirms your pre-existing views while ignoring information that contradicts them. For instance, suppose you believe you’re not a very good public speaker. When you give a presentation, you can dwell on every minor error or slip-up; thus, your notion that you’re not very good at it gets validated.

You will most likely forget the audience was enthralled and attentive, or that much of the presentation was hassle-free. You’re likely to focus primarily on the data that confirms your negative perception because of confirmation bias. This shows that other people’s expectations can shape how we behave and how successful we become.

Read More: Cognitive Biases in Everyday Life

Examples of Self-Fulfilling Prophecies

To better understand self-fulfilling prophecies, let’s look at a few everyday examples:

1.  Job Interviews: If someone believes they won’t get a job after an interview, they might approach the interview with a lack of confidence. Their nervousness or self-doubt may cause them to answer questions poorly or fail to make a good impression. When they don’t get the job, it reinforces their belief that they were never going to get it in the first place.
2.  Relationships: In relationships, self-fulfilling prophecies can play a big role. If you believe that your partner will eventually leave you, you might act more insecure or distant. This behaviour could push your partner away, confirming your fear that the relationship would end.
3. Academic Performance: Students who believe they are bad at a subject (like math or science) might not put in the effort to improve. They may avoid asking for help or skip studying because they think they’ll fail anyway. When their grades suffer, it reinforces their belief that they’re just not good at that subject.
4. Health and Well-Being: Self-fulfilling prophecies can also impact your health. If you believe that you will never be able to stick to a healthy diet, you might give up quickly when faced with temptation, confirming your belief that you’re not capable of maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

How to Break the Cycle of Negative Self-Fulfilling Prophecies

Now that we understand how self-fulfilling prophecies work, the question is: How can we stop negative expectations from becoming reality? Here are some simple strategies to help break the cycle of negative self-fulfilling prophecies:

•  Challenge Your Beliefs: The first step is to challenge the negative beliefs that may be holding you back. Ask yourself if your belief is true. For example, if you believe you’re not good at something, try to find evidence that contradicts this belief. Have there been times when you succeeded in this area? By challenging your beliefs, you can start to change the expectations that lead to negative outcomes.
•  Focus on Positive Outcomes: Instead of expecting the worst, try to focus on positive outcomes. This doesn’t mean ignoring reality, but it does mean being open to the possibility that things could go well. By shifting your expectations in a positive direction, you’re more likely to engage in behaviours that lead to success. For example, if you have an important task ahead, instead of thinking, “I’m going to fail,” try thinking, “I’ll do my best, and things might turn out better than I expect.” This can lead to more effort and better results.
• Practice Self-Reflection: Take time to reflect on how your beliefs and actions might be influencing your outcomes. Are there patterns in your behaviour that are causing certain results? By becoming more aware of your actions, you can start to make changes that lead to better outcomes.
• Surround Yourself with Positive Influences: Other people’s expectations can also influence your behaviour, so it’s important to surround yourself with people who believe in you and support your growth. Positive reinforcement from friends, family, or mentors can help you break free from negative self-fulfilling prophecies and build confidence in your abilities.
• Set Small, Achievable Goals: If you struggle with negative beliefs about your abilities, start by setting small, achievable goals. Success in small steps can build your confidence and help you challenge the negative beliefs that lead to self-fulfilling prophecies. For example, if you believe you’re not good at a particular skill, set a small goal to improve just a little bit each day. Over time, as you achieve these small goals, your belief in your abilities will grow.

According to Counselling Psychologist Anjali Seth, We become what we believe. The root cause of self-fulfilling prophecy and self-esteem both lie in a person’s perception, social expectations and influence. Self-fulfilling prophecy and self-esteem are closely related as they both affect each other. Its (self-fulfilling prophecy) effect can be positive or negative on self-esteem depending upon the kind of behaviour a person exhibits and in which direction they expect it to happen (positive/negative). If they believe a self-fulfilling prophecy is positive they perform/ exhibit positive behaviour and have a positive impact on self-esteem where as when they have a negative self-fulfilling prophecy it affects their self-esteem negativity. In both cases self-fulfilling prophecy strengthens their belief about their future prediction and changes their behaviour.

Read More: 4 tips to Set High-Achieving Goals

Conclusion

Self-fulfilling prophecies are an indication of the force or the power of our expectations and beliefs. They can prove to be very positive or very negative. Our expectations might lead us to behave in a manner that goes ahead and helps to create what we thought would happen. Understanding this role of self-fulfilling prophecies within our lives allows us to face the negative, focus on the positive, and finally bring about an improved reality for ourselves. Never forget that you can and will create the life you want from it if you use your mind – a pretty powerful weapon.

FAQs

1. How does a Self-fulfilling Prophecy work?

It starts with a belief or expectation, which affects a person’s behavior. Their actions then make the expected outcome more likely to happen, reinforcing the original belief.

2. Can self-fulfilling prophecies affect Relationships?

Yes. In relationships, if one person expects negative behavior from another, they might unconsciously act in ways that provoke such behavior, creating a negative cycle.

3. How can we avoid Negative Self-fulfilling Prophecies?

To avoid them, practice self-awareness, challenge negative beliefs, focus on positive thinking, and build confidence. Surrounding yourself with supportive people can also help shift negative expectations.

4. What role does Self-esteem play in Self-fulfilling Prophecies?

Self-esteem is crucial. People with low self-esteem are more prone to negative self-fulfilling prophecies, while those with high self-esteem are more likely to create positive ones, leading to better outcomes.

5. Can self-fulfilling prophecies be used for Personal Growth?

Yes! By consciously believing in your abilities and setting positive expectations, you can create a self-fulfilling prophecy that boosts motivation, improves performance, and leads to success.