Final answer:
A self-Fulfilling Prophecy is when expectations, even when inaccurate, cause individuals to behave in ways that confirm those expectations, as demonstrated by research on teacher expectations affecting student performance.
Step-by-step explanation:
The notion that once an expectation is set, even if it is not accurate, and it leads individuals to act in ways that make the expectation come true, is called a Self-Fulfilling Prophecy. This term explains how our beliefs and expectations about others can influence their behavior and thus confirm our original expectations. A classic example of this is provided by Rosenthal and Jacobson's research, which found that students performed better when their teachers had expectations of high performance, demonstrating the powerful influence of teacher expectations.
Notably, a related concept is the rational expectations theory, which asserts that people form the most accurate expectations possible using available information. However, in reality, many individuals and businesses operate with what is known as adaptive expectations, gradually adjusting their beliefs and behavior based on past experiences and changes in circumstances, rather than perfect prediction.