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Seven past field-experimental attempts to produce Pygmalion effects by training managers yielded meager results (Eden et al, 2000). The present effort bolstered the Pygmalion approach with special emphasis on means efficacy, defined as belief in the utility of the tools available for performing a job. Six randomly assigned anti-aircraft gunnery instructors received a one-day Pygmalion workshop with special emphasis on self-efficacy and means efficacy before beginning instruction in a new round of a course; eight control instructors received an interpersonal communication workshop. The trainees of the experimental instructors reported higher self-efficacy, means efficacy, and motivation, and obtained higher scores on written examinations and on performance tests than did the trainees of the control instructors. This is the first true-experimental confirmation of the effectiveness of Pygmalion training among instructors of adults and the first replication of the means-efficacy findings.

Pygmalion and charisma are mutually compatible leadership constructs that beg integration. They share some basic assumptions about human nature, about how leaders lead, and about how they could lead more effectively. Nevertheless, for the most part these constructs are discussed in disparate academic literatures. The present treatise integrates these somewhat divergent yet partially overlapping approaches to leadership and management. The differences between Pygmalion and charismatic leadership, and the commonalities that they share, are explicated. The aim is to understand better how leaders affect followers and how they can exert their influence with greater effectiveness. Some ideas for further research and for more effective management practice based on integration of Pygmalion and charisma constructs are presented. The result is a description of “charismatic Pygmalion,” an integrated management style that embodies both leadership constructs.

Despite considerable empirical evidence to support the existence of the Pygmalion effect, studies that focus on the role of gender within this phenomenon have produced varied results. Whereas the research has consistently demonstrated the Pygmalion effect with male leaders, less research evidence exists to support this phenomenon among female leaders. This paper aims to present a conceptual framework for understanding the potential role gender can play in the Pygmalion effect and why women may face obstacles in their efforts to serve as Pygmalion leaders. Research propositions are presented with the intent of guiding future research in this area.

For the purpose of this theoretical paper, elements of the sociological, structural and psychological perspectives are drawn to present an understanding of the potential influence a leader’s gender has on the facilitation of the Pygmalion effect. A brief background to the Pygmalion effect is first provided followed by research related to this phenomenon. Then the underlying elements of the Pygmalion effect are revisited and attention is drawn to those factors affecting subordinate receptiveness to leader influence. Following that, these ideas are integrated with gender-based research to present the theoretical framework and research propositions.

This paper’s framework offers a fuller understanding of the role of a leader’s gender in facilitating the Pygmalion effect by identifying factors that can influence subordinate perceptions of leader efforts. Gender-based cues influence subordinate perceptions of leader expertise and power. In turn, this will influence subordinate receptiveness to leader elicited expectations and supportive behaviors.

The theoretical framework of this paper suggests that under certain conditions, gender differences can impact subordinate receptiveness to leader behaviors and performance expectations. Managers need to be aware of the gendered-nature of the work context and how it can influence subordinate perceptions of leaders. Otherwise, gender-based cues can unwittingly undermine women who endeavor to elevate follower self-efficacy beliefs.

Stereotypes regarding women in managerial roles can undermine the capacity of women to effectively mentor and inspire others. These biases must be explicitly confronted and challenged. Moreover, given the global nature of the workforce it is critical to understand how national cultures can differ in their attitudes toward women in management in ways that can impede the ability of a woman to facilitate this transformative process.

The theoretical framework of this paper broadens the understanding of gender differences in the Pygmalion effect. This paper attempts to explain the lack of consistent findings for women who attempted to serve as Pygmalion leaders. It is asserted that rather than a leader’s gender, it is gender-based contextual cues that influence the leader’s capacity to trigger the Pygmalion effect. Thus far, no systematic effort has been made to identify the conditions under which subordinates are receptive to the influence of Pygmalion male or female leader expectations and behaviors.

The purpose of this study was to theorize and examine a Pygmalion perspective in how leader and coworker expectations predict in-role and ex-role employee green behavior (EGB).

Using a time-lagged field study, data were collected from a sample of 71 leaders and 340 members to examine the hypothesized relationships with a multilevel model (group level and individual level).

The results showed that leader green behavior and self-efficacy for EGB (i.e. the Pygmalion process) mediate the relationship between leader expectations and EGB, while self-efficacy mediates the relationship between coworker expectations and EGB. In addition, this study found that the effect of coworker expectations and EGB via self-efficacy is stronger when leaders themselves demonstrate a higher level of green behavior.

This study also aims to provide a multilevel theory and investigates the interplay between multilevel variables in encouraging EGB. It also extends previous EGB literature through investigating a different process (i.e. the Pygmalion process) relating leader expectations for EGB to EGB. Moreover, this study develops implications of Pygmalion process on EGB from theoretical and practical perspectives.

Reviews the literature on the Pygmalion effect and in particular its implications for workplace learning and training. The article considers the wide ranging debate within the education literature on the value of the Pygmalion concept and also considers research conducted in training and workplace settings. The implications of the concept for learning design, trainee self‐esteem, trainer behaviours, and workplace learning are considered.

The aim of this study is to systematically review the scholarly literature on the self-fulfilling prophecy and identify the theoretical and methodological gaps in the literature as a foundation to encourage future research.

To develop a theoretical framework for self-fulfilling prophecy research, each empirical article published in a peer-reviewed journal from January 2001 to October 2022 was retrieved using EBSCO’s Business Source Premier database. The keywords “self-fulfilling prophecy,” “Galatea effect,” “Golem effect” and “Pygmalion effect” were used in the Abstract of articles to conduct this literature review.

The authors developed a 2 × 2 framework that distinguishes self-fulfilling prophecies based on whether they are initiated internally or externally and whether positive or negative outcomes result. The authors then introduce what we label the Eyeore effect. The resulting framework helps identify the need for more research on the golem, Galatea and Eyeore effect.

This review is limited because the authors only reviewed peer-reviewed empirical articles in the English language.

This work provides a meaningful framework to synthesize the types of self-fulfilling prophecies and systematically reviews the state of the literature, as a springboard to identify and encourage fruitful areas of future research.

The paper presents an empirical account of self-fulfilling prophecy in a multicultural expatriate context of the Arabian Gulf (Sultanate of Oman). The purpose of this paper is to explore the link between managerial expectations of the effects of cultural diversity and workgroup performance.

This exploratory study uses a qualitative interpretive approach based on the data collected through semi-structured interviews. The participants were Omani managers in charge of multicultural expatriate workgroups.

Managerial expectations of the effects of multiculturalism on workgroup dynamics are linked to three dimensions of performance effectiveness, including the production function, the member support function and the group wellbeing function. The Pygmalion process, as applied to the multicultural expatriate context of this study, emerged as an integral part of positive organizational scholarship.

The data were collected in one country only, which limits the conclusions about the universal applicability of the Pygmalion theory. The boundary conditions were defined by the cultural characteristics of the research setting: collectivism, high power distance, high uncertainty avoidance, moderate masculinity/femininity.

For managers in charge of multicultural workgroups, the study provides motivation to project positive and affirmative expectations of multiculturalism, which is likely to lead to enhanced workgroup performance.

In examining the self-fulfilling prophecy phenomenon, this study transcends Western educational, military and industrial research contexts to investigate the Pygmalion process in a non-Western multicultural expatriate environment. The study contributes to unraveling the inconsistencies in findings on the relationship between cultural diversity and workgroup performance by highlighting the role of managerial expectations of multiculturalism.

Aims to answer the questions: What is the Pygmalion effect? How can it be used to advance careers? How can the negative effect be broken? Uses Rosenthal′s four‐factor theory to provide some answers to those questions.

After Pygmalion, King of Cyprus, had sculpted and fallen in love with his perfect woman, Galatea, his repeated prayerful overtures to the gods were answered. Venus gave life to her. Some two thousand years later in Shaw's play Pygmalion, Henry Higgins turned a cockney flower girl into an elegant lady, although he relied on language rather than love.

A leader's job is not to put greatness into people, but rather to recognize that it already exists and to create an environment where that greatness can emerge and grow (Smith, 2014). Based on Brad Smith's quote, the purpose of this study is to investigate the role of the leader's expectations, leader-member exchange (LMX) and organizational climate for innovation in fostering the intrapreneurial behavior (IB) of employees.

Data were collected from employees and their supervisors working across industries such as pharmaceutical, chemical, engineering and manufacturing. Collected data were then analyzed using the structural equation modeling technique.

The authors’ results show that LMX and leaders' expectations are positively linked to employees' IB. Moreover, this association is mediated by organizational climate.

This study's findings contribute to the literature on intrapreneurship and may also help practitioners formulate interventions to foster IB in organizations that will ultimately lead to higher performance.

This study attempted to investigate the effect of LMX and the Pygmalion effect on IB through employees' perception of organizational climate for innovation. The literature in this field is scarce and theoretical development is weak because traditional collaborative or participative leadership approaches are more relevant to an outcome than innovation.