Success & the neurobiology of expectations.

Our perception of success is influenced by our expectations.

 Expectations are biased by our prior experience and what we absorb from others e.g. Friends, family, social milieu, media choices

 Expectations that are reinforced (match outcomes) produce stronger connections in the brain.  They are learned behaviors.

 This is part of the “magic” of the placebo effect, which is effective in adults in over 30% of cases and up to 50-60% in children.  That is, what you believe, becomes reality.

 When our expectations do not match with our real-life outcome, we often feel disappointment, anger or even depression.

 Repeated disappointments can set up a nocebo effect such that you come to expect a negative outcome, another learned behavior.

 A prime example of the nocebo effect is math phobia.  This extremely common negative attitude is too often “passed” from parent to child, influencing the child’s expectations for being able to understand numerical problems.  Some become so paralyzed that they do not even try to find a solution.  Math skills are much more than arithmetic, but the backbone of problem-solving, useful for all aspects of life.

 Because negative expectations are learned behaviors means that you can retrain your brain to have a more positive attitude, which in turn improves your learning.

 How you define “success” requires knowing your values and what you consider truly important.  You may need to adjust your expectations to better match these values.