Merton, R. K. (1948). The self-fulfilling prophecy. The Antioch Review, 8(2), 193–210. doi:10.2307/4609267.
Read in full on 2026-10-29 (NOTE-1409). On CASE-142’s question, it covers the resistance route in part, for groups and under a second name: out-groups that answer the in-group’s definition are condemned for the answer as well, by “moral alchemy”, which renames conduct rather than producing it.
Why this is here
CASE-141, the label that confirms itself, is a stipulated case of the mechanism this paper named. It is registered so that the case’s mechanism has its classic source, and so that a reading can check whether Merton’s account already covers the resistance route of CASE-142, where the label is rejected and still confirmed. The record holds the nearest documented application through Espeland and Sauder (LIT-1330), who count self-fulfilling prophecy among the mechanisms of reactivity to rankings.