The Pygmalion Effect

NARRATOR: There’s a Greek myth about a sculptor, Pygmalion, who carved a woman out of ivory. The statue became so realistic and beautiful that Pygmalion fell in love and started treating it like a real woman: he brought it gifts like pretty sea shells and songbirds, dressed it in fine clothing and jewelry, and even talked to it. And after a while, the statue (with Aphrodite’s help) responded by coming to life.

This, of course, is pure fantasy. But the science suggests that it’s easier to sculpt another person than you’d think. All you need is a belief.

Here’s a common one: attractive people are more outgoing, warm, and interesting.

In the 1970s, psychologists tested the power of this stereotype. They set up 10-minute phone calls between men and women who had never met. They showed each man a picture of a woman and said, “This is who you’re talking to”. But it wasn’t. The photo was of someone else: someone either attractive or unattractive. Here’s what the psychologists wanted to know: would believing someone was beautiful actually change her personality?

The short answer was: yes. If you listened to just the women’s side of the call, you could hear it! Regardless of their actual personality or looks, women believed to be attractive did become more likeable and friendly. We call this the Pygmalion effect: when an expectation in one person’s mind changes how another person behaves. And it can go the opposite way too. Women believed to be unattractive became colder and more awkward.

Experiments like this show us how powerful expectations can be.  Even if they’re never said out loud, our beliefs can become self-fulfilling prophecies.