Lead author Stephanie Madon, an associate professor of psychology, graduate students Ashley Buller, Kyle Scherr and Jennifer Willard; Max Guyll, an assistant professor of psychology; and Richard Spoth, director of the Partnerships in Prevention Science Institute at Iowa State, analyzed data obtained from a series of interviews with nearly 800 Iowa mothers and their children age 3 to 5.

"The study found strong evidence that a mother's beliefs regarding her child's likelihood of using alcohol altered her child's self-view in either a positive or negative direction. The child then validated that new self-view by acting consistently with it later on," Madon said in a statement.

"What people believe ultimately has an impact on what actually occurs, but it's not just because they believe it. It's not magic. When we believe something -- even if we're wrong -- when we believe it's true, we act as though it is. And sometimes when you act as though something's true, your behaviors will cause the belief to become true."

The findings are published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.