The Self-fulfilling Prophecy Or How To Discriminate For No Reason

Self-fulfilling prophecy is one of the most interesting phenomena in social psychology. The power that our expectations have over reality has been amply demonstrated and in very diverse contexts. What we think about ourselves, others, and the world conditions us to such a degree that our assumptions generally end up being true.

Self-fulfilling prophecy is the name given in psychology to the evidence that holding a false belief leads, directly or indirectly, to its own fulfillment. There are mainly three elements involved in this process: the false belief that you hold, the acts that result from this belief, and the consequences of these acts.

How does self-fulfilling prophecy work?

This process is not only activated by the beliefs we have about others, but also our assumptions about ourselves or about specific events are influenced by it. For instance:

• I have a preconceived idea that a person is going to be unpleasant to me. Based on this, I behave (unconsciously) in a cold and cutting way towards her. The person will respond to me in the same way and in this way my belief that it is unpleasant will be confirmed.

• I think I am unable to learn to drive. Because of this belief, I face the experience with anxiety and little motivation. The result is that my performance is terrible and thus, I confirm my supposed incapacity.
• I am convinced that my marriage will fail. For this reason I act with distrust, fear and reproaches. The marriage ends, but it does so because of my own actions and not because it was really meant to be.

Self-fulfilling prophecy and prejudices

A prejudice is a preconceived opinion, a negative judgment that is made about someone without having enough information to do so, usually based on stereotypes. Stereotypes help us organize reality in a simplified way that allows us to deal with it more easily. However, they frequently lead us to fall into unfounded discrimination.

These prejudices are precisely the basis of the self-fulfilling prophecy. When our beliefs are related to other people, they can be severely influenced. The educational field has been one of the most prolific regarding research on this subject, it has been shown that those children considered more intelligent and capable by their teachers, ending up obtaining a better academic performance.

This success is not due to some supposed exceptional qualities of the student, but to the behavior that the teacher initiates due to his belief. The learning opportunities and intellectual challenges offered to children considered more capable are greater. And it is this very thing that leads them to greater academic development.

The basis of discrimination

However, this effect can be extrapolated to many other situations in life. When a mother considers her child to be disobedient, she will approach him with little patience and tolerance, leading to the child not cooperating. The little one will disobey, but due to the attitude of his mother.

If a boss considers an employee untrained, he will not provide him with the support or the opportunities to prove himself. In this way his belief that he is a bad worker will be confirmed and the circle is perpetuated.

Many groups are affected by this phenomenon that is experienced at the social level. Stereotypes lead to consider certain people more or less valid for certain tasks. For this reason they are offered unequal opportunities and supports that lead them to confirm the belief of their little worth.

Women, immigrants and other minorities are affected by these beliefs on a daily basis. Even men find this barrier in certain professions and tasks considered feminine.

Therefore, it is essential that we begin to be aware and take action on these preconceptions. Let’s not take anything for granted without checking it first. Otherwise we will be unfairly judging people and even closing the doors.

Let us also take care of the beliefs we hold about ourselves. Let us remember that our actions always try to be in tune with our beliefs and they will not hesitate to sabotage our plans and opportunities by aligning with them. Let’s try to keep an open, flexible and objective mind. Remember: whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you are right.