A self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to come true, due to a positive feedback loop between belief and behavior.

 

Its definition is attributed to sociologist Robert K. Merton (Robert K. Merton, "Social Theory and Social Structure"). According to it, a false perception of a situation provokes a new behavior, which leads to the original false perception of the situation becoming reality, thus perpetuating the dominance of the error (we cause events with our behavior that ultimately prove the truth of our original false perception).

 

For example, a dysfunctional inferiority schema causes someone to persistently and rigidly experience internal feelings of inadequacy or defectiveness. Deep down, they believe that no one who truly knew them could love them. Perhaps, as a form of distraction, they adopt an image of a person without problems, weaknesses, and flaws, while to every comment/situation that they perceive as negative, they react with intense criticism and anger... little by little, this behavior makes them seem unlikable, others distance themselves, and then they have created a situation of confirmation of their initial false belief about their true self.

 

At some point, such a vicious cycle can exacerbate a major depressive episode.

 

 

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