Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you will help them become what they are capable of becoming” ..Von Goethe might be condensing the The Pygmalion Effect….

The maximcrystalizes the concept that expectation carves the self fulfilling prophecies.We all have experienced that the teachers’ expectations about individual children become self-fulfilling prophecies for instance If a teacher believes a child is intelligent, the child will come to believe that and on the contrary if the teacher believes a child is slow, the child will come to believe that, too, and will indeed learn slowly.This holds true just everywhere and has been confirmed so many times, and in such varied settings, that it’s no longer even debated.The framework is called The Pygmalion Effect.

The Pygmalion Effect also know as the Rosenthal Effect is the phenomenon whereby higher expectations lead to an increase in performance,named after the Ovidius tale of a sculptor who falls in love with one of his statues. To elaborate it, the name “Pygmalion” comes from the story of Pygmalion, a mythical Greek Sculptor Pygmalion carved a statue of a woman and then became enamored with it. Unable to love a human, Pygmalion appealed to Aphrodite, the goddess of love. She took pity and brought the statue to life. The couple married and went on to have a daughter named Paphos. As elucidated ,the positive expectation leads to increased performance  similarly, low expectations lead to decreased performance called as the Golem Effect.Both effects come under the category of self-fulfilling prophecies. 

The concept exhibits in the pictorial representation, how our action towards others influences their behaviour towards us.Understanding the Pygmalion effect is a powerful way to positively affect those around us, from our children and friends to employees and leaders. For instance, If you receive frequent recognition from your boss, you are likely to feel motivated and will tend to achieve an even better performance.On the contrary, if you are continuously questioned and your work is ruthlessly criticized, the quality of your work can suffer.Hence If you expect the best in others, constructive criticism doesn’t have to sound like barb or jibe. Consequently if we don’t take into account the ramifications of our expectations, we may miss out on the fair benefits of holding high standards.

The Pygmalion effect is an interpersonal motivational phenomenon promising a high and positive turn around.It is important for us to understand how expectations impact our behavior and our subsequent outcomes so that we can properly mediate those expectations for the best possible outcomes.However, we also need to ensure that we don’t let our expectations of particular individuals overshadow other people that may have as much to offer.

The Pygmalion effect leads to desirable outcomes for those individuals which are labelled as having high potential. If we are in a leadership position, like teachers, bosses, and therapists are, we should always maintain and express positive expectations because these expectations will actually impact how we treat those that we are supporting, as well as how those individuals behave. Consequently it leads on to a strong message, not only we are responsible for our actions but we are also responsible for other’s reaction.So raise the expectation and set the bar high for all around and contribute in making performers.