What is the Self-Fulfilling Prophecy?

And how can it help you be a better person?

In 1948, American sociologist Robert Merton developed the concept of the Self-Fulfilling Prophecy.

The theory says that a prediction or expectation can become true if a person’s belief in it influences their behaviour, which can lead to the fulfillment of the prophecy.

In the article, Merton defines it as:

“[The Self-fulfilling prophecy] is a belief or expectation, correct or incorrect, could bring about a desired or expected outcome.”

For example, if you’re a teacher and you constantly call a student a bad student, the chances of him becoming a bad student for the long run will increase because he’ll start to believe it.

Additionally, this can extend to groups of people as well. 

Socialized Self: Merton's self-fulfilling prophecy and Cooley's looking-glass self

(Robert Merton)

Robert Merton was an American sociologist who won the 1994 National Medal of Science for his founding of the sociology of science. He spent most of his career as a professor at Columbia University, where he developed the concepts of the "reference group," and "self-fulfilling prophecy." For the purposes of this post, I will only discuss the latter.