Cognitive and social development in the light of parents’ and teachers’ interpersonal expectancy

The quality of the cognitive and social development of a child, and, in consequence, their education process, are determined in a significant way by inaccurate expectations, i.e. too low or too high expectations on the part of the parents and/or teachers. This phenomenon is especially observable among children whose alleged handicap in the domain of cognitive and/or social functioning, propelled by the expected cognitive, emotional and behavioral limitations, could, by means of the self-fulfilling prophecy mechanism, transform into a real handicap. Analyzing the relation between false expectations and children’s performance, researchers have proven that even a small-sized effect, in the order of r = 2, usually observed in research on the expectation phenomenon, results in an increase or decrease in the dynamics of cognitive and social development among 10% different-expectancy children. In the article there are discussed the results of classic and contemporary research on the impact of different expectancies on children’s developmental achievement and mechanisms which serve to explain the above mentioned relations.

Cognitive and social development in the light of parents’ and teachers’ interpersonal expectancy

The quality of the cognitive and social development of a child, and, in consequence, their education process, are determined in a significant way by inaccurate expectations, i.e. too low or too high expectations on the part of the parents and/or teachers. This phenomenon is especially observable among children whose alleged handicap in the domain of cognitive and/or social functioning, propelled by the expected cognitive, emotional and behavioral limitations, could, by means of the self-fulfilling prophecy mechanism, transform into a real handicap. Analyzing the relation between false expectations and children’s performance, researchers have proven that even a small-sized effect, in the order of r = 2, usually observed in research on the expectation phenomenon, results in an increase or decrease in the dynamics of cognitive and social development among 10% different-expectancy children. In the article there are discussed the results of classic and contemporary research on the impact of different expectancies on children’s developmental achievement and mechanisms which serve to explain the above mentioned relations.