Work psychology: the Pygmalion effect, or the self-fulfilling prophecy to boost your teams

What is the Pygmalion effect, or Rosenthal and Jacobson effect? This article aims to give a complete definition of this psychological concept, widely used in the sphere of personal and professional development!We describe the origins of this concept, how it came about through the results of an experiment conducted first on rats, then on schoolchildren.

Knowing the Pygmalion effect can be an additional key to being a good manager: knowing how to adapt your behavior to overcome prejudice and boost your team's performance is a strength.

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What is the Pygmalion effect? Definition and origins

Let's try to understand this concept with a simple definition. What is the Pygmalion effect? It's what's known in psychology as a self-fulfilling prophecy, according to which the judgment made by a person or by ourselves influences and conditions our behavior.

The simple fact that a subject believes in his or her skills and abilities improves his or her chances of achieving a goal, as well as his or her results.

This applies to a third party who believes in an individual's abilities, as well as to an individual who believes in his or her own abilities. In both cases, the individual in question will feel confident and motivated by a positive state of mind, behavior and actions that motivate him or her and put him or her in a good frame of mind.

The more you believe in yourself, the more likely you are to succeed.

The Pygmalion effect is also known as the Rosenthal effect, after the psychologist who studied and conceptualized it, or the Rosenthal and Jacobson effect - we'll see why later.

Remind you of the Coué method? The Pygmalion effect is similar, in the sense that the power of thought and autosuggestion, in the case of the Coué method, is supposed to bring about concrete positive results in a subject's life.

Origin and etymology

Pygmalion was an ancient Cypriot sculptor, son of Athena and Hephaestus. He had dedicated himself to celibacy, revolting first against the Prophetides, prostitutes living on the island of Cyprus, and then against the institution of marriage itself.

He sculpted a marble statue of a woman so beautiful that he fell in love with her after a feast dedicated to Aphrodite, goddess of love. Aphrodite agreed to bring the statue to life, and Pygmalion married her.

Jean-Léon Gérôme, Pygmalion and Galatea, 1890

Pygmalion effect vs. Golem effect

The Golem effect is the opposite of the Pygmalion effect, its negative counterpart. It's another self-fulfilling prophecy, this time from Jewish mythology.

The Golem effect is defined as follows: low expectations of an individual insidiously lead to lower performance on his or her part.

You may have heard of this experiment with two pots of rice:

1. Place rice in two different pots.
2. To the first, say kind words in a soft, cheerful voice.
3. To the second, be unpleasant, even insulting, in a threatening tone.
4. As the weeks go by, you'll notice that the second pot rots, while the first hasn't budged.

This experience was illustrated in a scene from Guillaume Canet's film Les Petits mouchoirs. Sound familiar?

Psychologist Dr. Rosenthal's experiment

Experiment 1: rat experiment

Robert Rosenthal and his team worked with a group of students conducting an experiment and studying the behavior of rats in a maze learning context.

🐁 Two groups of students were given rats to study:

• group 1 received "intelligent" rats;
• group 2 received "dumb" rats.

🐁 What they didn't know was that the rats were all the same: none were smarter or dumber than their fellow rats. As a result:

• the students in group 1 stimulated the rats more, thinking them smarter than the others and therefore able to achieve better results in the maze.
• students in group 2 behaved in the opposite way, and left feeling defeated about their rats' abilities.

Conclusion of the experiment: the rats that the students thought were smarter actually performed better in the experiment. In truth, it was only the students' perceptions that changed. This is the Rosenthal effect.

Experiment 2: Children

The previous experiment was reproduced on children. It was conducted by Robert Rosenthal and Lenore Jacobson at the Oak School in San Francisco, USA.

The researchers posed as a research team from Harvard University whose object of study was "the late blooming of students". The stated aim is to measure children's abilities by having them take IQ tests.

How the experiment works :

• All pupils are tested.
• The results are transmitted "by accident" to the teaching staff, but the results are not really those of the children.
• Grades were, in fact, assigned randomly: 20% of pupils were given an over-rated grade.

At the end of the school year, R. Rosenthal and L. Jacobson administered a new assessment to the pupils. The results were the same as those of the rat experiment: students whose teachers thought they were more gifted actually performed better.

Applications of the Pygmalion effect

In everyday life

The Pygmalion effect is a lever for achieving your goals, improving your self-image, believing in your abilities and making others believe in theirs.

It creates a virtuous circle of positive, benevolent behavior towards others, and above all, towards ourselves.

Positive behavior towards someone can have major beneficial consequences on :

• self-confidence,
• self-esteem
• motivation,
• self-image and that of others,
• willpower,
• the means we use to achieve a goal,
• our results, etc.

In this way, the Pygmalion effect acts as a real booster of self-confidence and everyday success. And this positive vision has an impact on all aspects of a person's life, both personal and professional:

• 🏃 In sport: if your coach believes in your team and in you, you'll go much further. Did you think you couldn't run that half-marathon? And yet, your coach's beliefs have paid off, and thanks to this self-fulfilling prophecy, you've just crossed the finish line!
• 🌹 In personal relationships: if your lover tells you that you're good at cooking, you gain confidence and this influences your desire to improve with even more complex recipes.
• 💼 At work: a manager who values your ideas and actions encourages you to dare more. The result? It lifts your spirits and fosters your creative potential and motivation. But more on that below.

Remember, we often become what others project onto us!

If speaking lovingly to plants helps them grow, imagine what speaking lovingly does to humans.

Are your teams lacking motivation? Stimulate your staff with these 50 quotes on teamwork:

At school

Education in general, and school in particular, is one of the most obvious areas where the Pygmalion effect can be applied.

A teacher who believes in his or her pupils and thinks that they all have the same chance of success unconsciously gives them that same chance, by behaving in the same way with all pupils.

Several factors come into play, such as

• the general environment created by the teaching staff,
• the place given to each student in the class (time and attention),
• the opportunity given to students to express themselves,
• the proportion of rewards and punishments distributed.

This also applies to training in general, including vocational training.

🙌 You can't imagine how much a teacher's positive behavior can accomplish in schools, for example on :

• A pupil struggling academically in maths: the teacher tells the child that he's clever and has the ability to get there if he practises. Very quickly, he raises his hand in class and gets better marks.

• A shy pupil who doesn't dare speak up in a group: his teacher regularly asks him questions and values his answers. Little by little, this attitude will influence the child's behavior, as he or she will gain self-esteem and express themselves more freely.

• A student who was brilliant in science, but little encouraged by her family: her teachers encouraged her to believe in her abilities and in the possibility of aiming for a preparatory class. This intervention boosted her confidence, and she applied and passed with flying colors.

• A student undergoing professional retraining who doubts himself: his trainer treats him like a future expert. And the effect? Improved commitment, greater self-confidence and rapid progress.

In management

It's natural for all managers to have expectations of their team members. But the way in which they go about it can vary drastically, influencing employee behavior.

Ultimately, the logic is the same as with schoolchildren.

Tell your staff that they're not good enough and that you have no choice but to check their work, and they won't give their best. They'll be frustrated that they're not making progress, and you'll be disappointed by their lack of autonomy or skills.

Conversely, show your team that you believe in them, and they'll do everything to prove you right. Bonus: the objectives will be achieved, and the team's overall performance will be better!

💪 A good manager is a bit like a good teacher: he makes you want to succeed! Believing in your own team actually improves overall company performance. The Pygmalion effect is a virtuous phenomenon that can be illustrated, for example, with :

• A new employee in the middle of taking up a position: his manager gives him assignments with high expectations, and assures him that he has the ability to succeed. The result: a positive impact that pushes the employee to excel and prove he's up to the task.

• An employee who doubts his skills: his N+1 congratulates him on his ideas and encourages him to defend them in meetings. As a result, they dare to speak up, become more influential, and no longer feel like mere pawns in the company.

• An employee thought to be unmotivated: being judgmental and over-supervisory would have the opposite effect of what we're looking for. His manager therefore shows confidence in him and gives him more autonomy. Over time, the employee becomes more involved, and regains motivation.

• A group under pressure before a big project: their manager tells them how much he believes in them and reminds them of all the successes they've had to date. Reboosted, the group organizes itself better, offers greater efficiency and delivers high-quality work.

💡 In theory, you might think that managing with authority is the key, but all these little stories highlight the opposite. The management style proposed by the company therefore has a direct effect on team motivation.

The manager's role in putting the Pygmalion effect into practice

Managers coach their teams! He influences the group's performance through his expectations and attitude. The Pygmalion effect, widely studied in pedagogy, is also applied in the workplace, particularly in management. Here's how to apply it on a daily basis:

• Formulate positive expectations: saying "I know you're going to manage this project like a boss" rather than "I hope you don't screw it up" changes everything! Believing in your collaborator is already giving them a chance to succeed.

• Give constructive feedback: focus on individual and group progress, not just mistakes. This reduces cognitive bias and motivates teamwork.

• Create a caring environment: right from the starting line, encourage autonomy and value everyone's efforts.

• Avoid negative bias: in a test, if a first group of employees is given a very high level of dedicated attention, while the second group is underestimated, you'll soon notice that the results will be very different.

The Pygmalion effect shows that the manager's gaze strongly influences his team's performance. This phenomenon has been observed for years, and it remains as powerful as ever.

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The Pygmalion effect from theory to practice

How can you incorporate the Pygmalion effect into your life? Here are a few final tips.

• Be kind to others and yourself.
• Remember only positive remarks.
• Whenever possible, turn negative remarks into constructive ones, so that you can make progress and draw strength from them.
• Be aware of all that is positive around you, rather than pointing out the negative.
• Be daring ! There will always be someone who will tell you not to go ahead for this or that reason; forget about that person and listen to your desire.
• Believe in yourself, your abilities and your projects: if you don't believe in them, who will?
• Never neglect open-mindedness and tolerance.
• Say no to judgments and generalizations.
• ... and apply all this to others too 😉