The Pygmalion Effect and the Psychology of Success
Introduction
How do our expectations affect our achievements? What happens when you expect yourself to fail? Your expectations influence and empower your goals. They motivate you, they inspire you, they challenge you, but above all, your expectations contribute to your success. If you expect yourself to fail, then you will. If you expect yourself to succeed, you may just do it. This correlation was discovered in 1968 by Robert Rosenthal and Lenoir Jacobson in their famous book. They explored how expectations affected success.
The Experiment
Just imagine this: a researcher hands you a box of puzzle pieces. He gives you 30 seconds to solve the puzzle, but before you get started, he says, "Don't worry, this puzzle will be easy for you. You'll solve it in no time." In other words, he has high expectations of you. He anticipates that you're going to do well. By encouraging you, he shows that he has faith in you, and you respond positively. You solve the puzzle in less than 30 seconds, just like he expected.
Now, let's run this scenario again. This time, we're going to change the researcher's expectations. Like before, he hands you a box of puzzle pieces, and you have 30 seconds to put it together, but before you get started, he says, "This puzzle is way too difficult for you. I don't think you can solve it." This time, the researcher has low expectations of you. He does not have faith in your ability, and so you fail. It's the same puzzle with the same time limit, but expectations can make or break your performance. Rosenthal and Jacobsen call this the Pygmalion Effect. High expectations create positive results; low expectations, on the other hand, decrease performance and motivation.
Impact on Performance
This psychological phenomenon can affect you in any setting, and its impact can last a lifetime. All right, let's say one of your co-workers makes a lot of careless mistakes. They make so many mistakes that everyone expects them to mess up. Other employees make fun of them. Your boss gives them trivial, meaningless responsibilities. They're consistently ignored for raises and promotions. No one expects them to succeed, so they don't. Instead, they make more mistakes. They hold themselves back. They become the failure that everyone expects them to be.
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
The Pygmalion Effect is like a self-fulfilling prophecy. The expectations of others can change who you become, for better or for worse. But there's something we've missed. We've yet to uncover the real power behind the Pygmalion Effect. Yes, the expectations of others are important. You may perform better when your bosses, clients, and mentors expect great things from you. However, your greatest source of strength is you. No one's expectations affect you more than your own. Your expectations can lift you up as easily as they can tear you down.
Taking Advantage of the Pygmalion Effect
So how can you take advantage of this psychological phenomenon? How can the Pygmalion Effect motivate your success? And where does self-confidence come from? To answer these questions, let's explore three different pieces of this mysterious self-confidence. These pieces influence your expectations and change your perspective on yourself. Thanks to the Pygmalion Effect, they may even lead you toward success.
The Four Experiences
Experience may be your greatest asset. It can motivate a lifetime of confidence and passion. It expands your mind and sharpens your identity. But how does it work? All right, let's say you're terrified of jumping off a high dive, but you muster up all your courage, and you leap from the diving board. Despite all your worries and fears, you land safely in the water below. Suddenly, your opinion of the high dive changes. You know what it's like to jump from the top. You've conquered that challenge. You've overcome that fear. You've done it once, so you can do it again and again and again. In other words, your expectations of yourself have changed.
The first time around, you expected to get hurt. You expected yourself to fail, so you ran away. Now that you have experience, you expect yourself to succeed, and that's exactly what you do. Every experience in life works the same way. Take a new job, for example. It seems overwhelming or intimidating at first, but experience will help you overcome your fears. You'll learn to have higher expectations of yourself. You'll learn to believe in your ability, and that self-belief will give you the confidence to succeed.
If you want to find success, you need to gain meaningful experiences and plenty of them. These experiences fall into four different categories. Each category influences you in a different way, but they all play an important role in your self-confidence and success.
The Four Categories
Category | Description |
---|---|
Mastery Experiences | Teach you resilience and courage. You have to overcome an obstacle, usually something that scares you, like the high dive. |
Vicarious Experiences | Supply you with motivation and inspiration. You perceive something through someone else, like watching someone win a gold medal. |
Modeling Experiences | Provide a path to follow by learning from a role model or mentor. These lessons help you find purpose and direction. |
Emotional and Physical Experiences | Come in all shapes and sizes, teaching you about yourself, maturing you, and forcing you to confront uncomfortable situations. |
In life, you'll encounter experiences from each and every category, some more than others, but that's okay. It's not important that you chase each category individually. Everyone has different experiences at different times. Some are empowered by lifelong mentors. Others face physical and emotional hurdles on a daily basis. You never know what kinds of experiences you'll have, but you never stop searching for them. So make yourself vulnerable. Step out of your comfort zone. Take risks. Say yes to things you never thought you'd say yes to. Each experience will push you in a new direction. Each experience will reinvent and dispel your fears in its own unique way. Each experience will prepare you for success.
Basic Autonomy
Experience cannot create self-belief on its own. It's a powerful foundation. It stimulates trust, vulnerability, and ultimately growth, but your confidence cannot flourish without a sense of control. This concept comes from self-determination theory. Self-determination theory explores the roots of human motivation. People have three basic needs: relatedness, competence, and autonomy. Each need is important for your dedication, passion, and happiness, but the last one, autonomy, plays a crucial role in your self-confidence.
Importance of Autonomy
Autonomy is your ability to make independent decisions. You need to feel control over your own life. If you don't feel control, you stand no chance of being successful because autonomy gives you agency, and agency lets you grab hold of your future. But how do you nurture this sense of control in your life? You start by taking responsibility for yourself. You practice, for example, making your own decisions. Look in your closet. Take a hard look at the clothes you wear. Do you wear these things because you like them? Did you choose to dress like this, or did someone make that decision for you?
Now, ask the same questions of your habits, your lifestyle, and your career. Did you decide these things for yourself? If you had it your way, would you make changes? If the answer is yes, then make those changes. Gain control of your life. Decide for yourself and then actually follow through. Not only will you satisfy a basic human need, but you'll also learn to believe in yourself. You'll raise your expectations of yourself, and you'll push yourself toward personal success.
Bandura's Theory
The final piece is called self-efficacy. This concept comes from a psychologist named Albert Bandura. Self-efficacy, he says, is your personal judgment of your capability. If you have high self-efficacy, you believe in your ability to face challenges and overcome them. On the surface, self-efficacy is very similar to autonomy, but the two concepts differ in one very important way. Autonomy is a human desire for control. Self-efficacy, on the other hand, is your perception of your autonomy.
Perception and Control
You may have plenty of control over your life, but what if you don't believe you have control? If that happens, your self-confidence will plummet, and your success will follow. Low self-efficacy increases the likelihood of failure, just like low expectations. All right, let's say your boss gives you an important project for the week. He gives you some loose instructions, and you follow his instructions to the letter. In the end, the project turns out terribly. You have the knowledge to fix it. You have the ability to fix it, but you don't feel like you have the control to fix it, so the project fails. Low self-efficacy has the same effect on your life.
Transforming Your Internal Narrative
Together, these three pieces transform your internal narrative. Experiences give you confidence. Autonomy gives you control, and self-efficacy gives you faith in yourself. Because of the Pygmalion Effect, we know just how powerful this narrative can be. So expect yourself to achieve, and there's a good chance you will.
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Pygmalion Effect FAQ
1. What is the Pygmalion Effect?
The Pygmalion Effect refers to the phenomenon where high expectations lead to improved performance, while low expectations lead to poorer performance. It was first identified in 1968 by Robert Rosenthal and Lenoir Jacobson, showing that our expectations can greatly influence our achievements and outcomes.
2. How do expectations impact our achievements?
Expectations serve as a form of motivation and inspiration. When you expect to succeed, you are more likely to be motivated and driven to achieve your goals. Conversely, if you expect to fail, you may not put in the effort needed to succeed, leading to a self-fulfilling prophecy where failure becomes more likely.
3. Can the Pygmalion Effect influence workplace performance?
Yes, the Pygmalion Effect can significantly impact workplace performance. When managers and colleagues have high expectations for an employee, it can boost their confidence and productivity. On the other hand, low expectations can undermine an employee's motivation and lead to decreased performance.
4. How can I use the Pygmalion Effect to improve my own success?
To leverage the Pygmalion Effect for personal success, start by setting high expectations for yourself. Believe in your ability to achieve your goals and seek experiences that build confidence and competence. Cultivate a sense of autonomy and self-efficacy to take control of your life and future.
5. What role does self-efficacy play in the Pygmalion Effect?
Self-efficacy, or your belief in your ability to succeed, is crucial in the Pygmalion Effect. High self-efficacy can enhance your motivation and resilience, helping you to overcome challenges and achieve your goals. It is important to cultivate a strong sense of self-belief to harness the full power of the Pygmalion Effect.
For more insights on self-improvement, visit our website Read Review Talk and check out our blog for more articles.