Principles of Management CLEP Practice Exam 2026 – Your Comprehensive All-in-One Guide to Exam Success!

The Pygmalion effect is a psychological phenomenon that illustrates how an individual's performance can be significantly influenced by the expectations placed upon them by others. When a leader, teacher, or manager has high expectations for someone's capabilities, it often leads to improved performance because individuals tend to internalize those expectations and strive to meet them. This creates a self-fulfilling prophecy where positive expectations can lead to better performance outcomes.

In contexts such as the workplace or educational settings, if employees or students are treated as capable and competent individuals, they are likely to rise to that expectation, resulting in enhanced motivation and engagement. This dynamic underscores the importance of recognizing and actively managing expectations in order to foster an environment conducive to high performance.

The other options reflect misconceptions about the influence of expectations; for instance, suggesting that individuals perform better when free from expectations overlooks the motivational role that expectations can play. Additionally, stating that expectations have no impact on performance contradicts a wide body of research supporting the significance of expectations, while the notion that people are generally unaware of others' expectations fails to recognize that cues about expectations are often observable and influential in social settings.