Performative prediction

The term performative prediction (lowercase) refers to the same phenomenon as Performative Prediction: predictive models that alter the systems they predict. The lowercase usage is common in science and technology studies (STS), where it emphasizes the performative dimension of scientific knowledge — the idea that scientific models do not merely describe reality but actively participate in constructing it.

In this usage, performative prediction is a special case of the broader phenomenon of performativity in language and social theory. The lowercase form also connects to J.L. Austin's theory of speech acts and to Bruno Latour's actor-network theory. What the STS tradition adds that the formal tradition misses is the emphasis on power: performative predictions are not merely epistemic failures but instruments of governance, shaping behavior through the very act of forecasting it.