Self-fulfilling prophecy
A process where a belief about someone causes them to behave in ways that confirm that belief, making it true through social interaction rather than because it was true initially.
Real World
In many UK schools, students placed in 'gifted and talented' programmes receive enrichment activities and higher teacher expectations, often outperforming peers of equal ability who were not selected.
Exam Focus
Show the process as a chain: prediction → changed interaction → changed behaviour → prophecy confirmed.
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