How Are Children's Inaccurate Expectations Affect Relationships?

During the early 1930’s, economic instability created public fear of financial collapse. After a number of unstable banks went out of business, fearful customers of other banks rushed to withdraw their savings. Since most banks do not hold large amounts of cash in reserve and instead invest the money through loans such as home mortgages or bonds, they did not have enough cash on hand to meet the withdrawal demand. Consequently, many otherwise solvent banks went bankrupt in a matter of days, even hours. Their customers had created the very calamity they feared would happen. Merton (2016) cites this as one example of how inaccurate expectations (in this case, a self-fulfilling prophecy) created devastating consequences. Expectations can aid or hinder one’s ability to navigate circumstances and relationships. Expectations are …show more content…
They influence how children interact with others and with their circumstances; they influence personal and romantic relationships, and can even create self-fulfilling prophecies. What children learn to expect shapes their perception of and response to the world around them. McGregor, Zimmer-Gembeck, and Creed (2012) reported that children who have an “expectation of rejection by others” tend to employ “avoidant [coping] strategies when faced with stressful situations” (p. 59) in life and relationships. Conversely, when children expect comfort, support, and security in relationships, they tend to “engage in active [or healthy] coping strategies” (McGregor, Zimmer-Gembeck, & Creed, 2012, p. 59). Often times, dysfunctional approaches to managing “stressful” circumstances allow a child to survive in a negative or abusive environment. These approaches, however, will tend to disrupt their relationships with those who are not harmful and compromise their ability to successfully navigate life. When children have positive expectations, however, they interact with their environment more