Shimbo Pastory
This article was published in The Citizen Newspaper – Tanzania, on Tuesday 9th November, 2021
There is always no greater performance without greater motivation. Our capacities flourish more when we are at rest, confident that we are accepted and our contribution, however little it is, is noticed.
The ‘Pygmalion effect’ is a psychological backdrop whereby higher expectations in one indirectly result in higher performance in another. It is also called the Rosenthal effect, as it was brought to light by Robert Rosenthal, an American psychologist.
We shall be discussing the Pygmalion effect in the context of the parent/guardian–child relationship, whereby the former aims at improving the learning and performance of the latter.
To achieve this effect, expectations are embodied by a motivating spirit either directly or indirectly. Efficiency in young persons (children) is greatly achieved in an explorative zone. This is a scientific inference.
Mechanical performance can be remarkable, for instance in memorizing, and repeating tasks over time, as well as mastering sequences, series, and patterns. But these do not depict maturity or practical efficiency as they provide a fixed model to guide the child in solving a problem, even though they display competence.
Efficiency comes with the free digestion of facts gathered and one’s way of going about them to achieve an expected result. The admonition here is, in giving children tasks to perform one ought to drop the fears that the child will not perform the task well.
Let us take an instance whereby two children are to perform an activity. The two come from different backgrounds. One goes to perform the task without notice of parents and guardians because they won’t care much even if they were to know about it. But for the second child, parents are aware of what the child is up to and are doing their best to encourage him.
Input
In this case, for both children, the input is parental guidance, efficiently communicated trust and confidence, knowledge of the task to be undertaken, materials required, and reliable safety checks concerning the activity at hand.
Output
The output, in this case, is necessarily the expected return from the input; it is theoretical, mechanical and oftentimes material. This is because children predominantly deal with material things in the course of learning.
However, even the immaterial inputs mentioned above play an important role in both the attitude and psycho-sociological state of the child before, during, and after the task.
Outcome
It is in the outcome that we can tell whether the performance at the output was merely resultant (as in, naturally expected) or prolific (as in, creative) due to the motivation invested.
The two have varying manifestations. They are felt as well as explained differently. The former has only inside-the-box thinking, while the latter is a free and creative exploration of the task. In the latter, the child can talk freely about it because he feels appreciated.
Impact
The motivated child has higher chances of loving the exploration and learning new things, even beyond the required as compared to the unmotivated one. The impact is the goal of parenting and education.
In raising children parents are investing in creating an impact on them.
That is why parents look for better schools, better accommodation, better books, better TV channels, better programmes, and better friends for their children. The goal is to create a better impact, far away from the bare minimum.
Our impact has ‘breadth’ if it is spread all through the interests and passions of a motivated child. It has ‘depth’ if it has uprooted shame, timidity, and fears of failure and criticism from the child. The breadth and depth of impact make the child comfortable in learning and mastering the subject or skill at hand.
How to maximize the Pygmalion effect
Child upbringing should be done in a positive panorama. Here we speak of upbringing in a broader sense of the term. Teachers and trusted guardians are all co-parents. The fact that children can perform poorly, or reason, act, or behave wrongly should be taken as a human reality.
Make a gentle move to correct them. The principal task at hand is to motivate them. This is iterative, in the sense that we repeat it until the expectation is attained.
Children can become self-efficacious and self-driving. Assure them, “I know you can do this”, “try it again”, “you are the best at it”, etc.; tell them and show them you love what they are passionate about.
To end with, let us bear in mind that it is also fruitful to give children a chance to talk about what they like. Make them feel like they are teaching you, even if you know the subject better.
Free dialogue with adults develops in them greater confidence and also affirms and deepens their understanding. The world needs serious, responsible, mature, passionate, informed, and positively motivated young people.
