Being Lucky - The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

Today was the first day back for my Y13 Psychology students. I didn't want to overload them on their first day back, so we discussed the layout of the forthcoming year. One of the modules that they will study is criminology. We had a little discussion about it's definition and the work of criminal psychologists.

As part of the Edexcel syllabus, they must study about 'explanations of crime'. One of the explanations focuses on the self-fulfilling prophecy. This is a very interesting psychological phenomenon that occurs in everyday life. Instead of focusing on crime, we focused on the general idea of it and being lucky.
3/4 students believed in luck, whereas the remaining student believed in things happening due to their own independent efforts. I tried to suggest to the students that whilst it's OK to feel lucky, you are in control of your future (unless it is to do with winning the lottery - that we cannot control!!)

So... What is the self-fulfilling prophecy? 

"A self-fulfilling prophecy is a belief that comes true because we are acting as if it is already true".

Another definition is - "a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true, by the very terms of the prophecy itself, due to positive feedback between belief and behaviour." (Good Therapy, 2015)

There are several examples of using this in everyday life. One example I always use with the students relates to exam grades. If you study hard at home rather than playing video games - it's no surprise that you will score high grades. The same can be said for poor grades - poor attainment and attendance.

Another example would be in relationships. If a lady starts dating a man and believes that he is not 'marriage material', then she will take the relationship less seriously and try to limit the amount she invests in the relationship. Because of this lack of investment, the man may feel that she is distant and he probably won't stick around long.

Now on this concept of being lucky. 

If you have a good relationship with your partner - are you lucky?

If you score all A*s in your GCSE's - are you luck?

If you get that new job - are you lucky?

One could argue yes. However, for me, I will keep telling my students that if you believe, then you will achieve. Hard work and determination are the key ingredients that we all need for this forthcoming academic year to reach our goals. It's time to ensure all of our students develop this 'growth mindset' which drives motivation and achievement. Here is a link to Carol Dweck's synthesis of growth v fixed mindset.

Over the coming weeks, I will start to relate this to criminology for my students. Stay tuned!

Psychology at IPS - An Introduction from Teacher Dom

Welcome to my first post. I will aim to write a post once a week, time permitting. I will also publish links to my Y12 Psychology blogs. My blog will feature mainly psychological concepts but I may occasionally post some personal experiences, so please follow our adventure.

This week my Y12 students had an introduction to Freud's Psychodynamic Theory. It is a theory that has caused considerable debate among academics. Freud almost 'sexualises' concepts from the early years, and I do apologise to my Y12s about this.

They have created a blog on the topic covered this week. In particular, the psychosexual stages and the case study of Little Hans. I also gave them a topic to debate about whether behaviourism or psychodynamic theory provides the best explanation of behaviour. It was interesting to read their responses, and the majority focused on behaviourism due to it's more scientific nature when compared with psychodynamic theory. However, I was also intrigued by one student who suggested that the psychodynamic theory provides a better explanation because it consists of nature AND nurture.


I have advised my students that their blogs should not be 'textbook' notes, but in fact, they are encouraged to include their own opinions/ideas where necessary to demonstrate understanding. It's mainly informal, and for their revision so I only check their blogs regarding content, structure and ideas. They may have exam questions to answer which I will give detailed verbal/written feedback so that they can fix it.
You can read their blogs below:

http://tashapsycheblog.blogspot.com/

http://yasminepsychologyial.blogspot.com/2018/03/yasmine-i.html

https://natnichanickypsychologyial.blogspot.com/

https://isabellepsychologyial.blogspot.com/

I encourage my students to become critical thinkers, and this is one way of achieving the goal. I like this quote from Steven C Reinhart - "A good teacher has changed from 'the one who explains things so well that students understand' to 'one who gets students to explain things so well that they can be understood'.
I use this concept throughout my teaching. An idea that I used with my Y7 English class is to 'explain to an alien'. I will take the role of an alien during class and ask them to explain concepts to this creature in a simple form. This encourages speaking skills and critical thinking, which is of great significance to our international students. This tip was shared with me by a tutor on my PGCE called Sara Davies. I loved this AoL strategy when it was introduced to me and will continue to use it throughout my teaching career.



I hope you follow my students blogs throughout the year as they prepare for their 'Edexcel International A-Level' in Psychology.