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Imposter phenomenon (IP) refers to an internalized sense of intellectual deceit and persistent self-doubt, even with evidence of competence. The phenomenon significantly impacts mental health, often leading to heightened levels of stress, anxiety, and depression, as well as affecting career progression by obstructing professional development and reducing overall job satisfaction. This narrative review explores the key aspects of the impostor phenomenon, including its clinical manifestations, diagnostic tools, prevalence, and treatment approaches. By synthesizing existing literature, the review aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of these topics, offering insights into the impact of the impostor phenomenon on individuals and highlighting effective strategies for intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing upon affective events theory, this study explained how organisational political climate through fear of failure affects employee behavioural outcomes, namely procrastination and submissive behaviour. The current study unpacked the combined effects of organisational political climate and impostorism on fear of failure. Using three wave and multi-sourced data (self and peer-reported) from 275 employees, this study tested the hypothesised model in public sector organisations of an under-researched country, Pakistan. After establishing the reliability and validity of research instruments, the direct and indirect effects were tested which revealed that politically driven work climate spurred employee procrastination and submissive behaviour via fear of failure. Results also indicated that the combined effects of organisational political climate and impostorism significantly moderated fear of failure. The results confirmed that impostorism moderated the mediated relationship. Implications for theory and practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Imposter syndrome (IS) refers to the psychological experience of imagining that one's achievements do not originate from one's own authentic competence. Surgeons are constantly faced with life-threatening decisions and can easily feel inadequate or insecure despite their years of training and experience. Imposter syndrome can distress surgeons at all career stages and has profound psychological and professional consequences. We aimed to review imposter syndrome in surgeons. Methods: A systematic search was performed in compliance with The PRISMA checklist. Search was performed in the PubMed and ScienceDirect databases. We included articles about IS in surgeons. We excluded narrative articles, commentaries and studies involving medical students or other specialties. Citations were quality assessed by MERSQI and evidence graded (GRADE). Risk of bias was assessed among the included citations. Results: The search revealed 695 citations, from which a final list of 12 was compiled after applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Participants included trainees and consultant surgeons across various surgical specialties. The following research questions were answered: Are surgeons with IS predisposed to mental or physical challenges? Do surgeons experience gender differences in IS? Can the feeling of IS be reduced? Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of imposter syndrome among surgeons. Surgeons with IS are predisposed to experience mental or physical challenges. Female surgeons experience IS more frequently than their male counterparts. Feelings of IS can decline with increasing age but also with other included methods. Risks and multiple preventative measures were explored. The key to reducing IS is to train oneself to discern fact from fiction, thereby undermining distorted thoughts that perpetuate feelings of being an imposter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Psychological phenomena such as impostor phenomenon (IP) and low work-related satisfaction increase the risk of burnout among medical professionals. The prevalence of these contributory risk factors among South Asian medical professionals has not been examined thus far. This study aims to assess the prevalence, severity and associations of IP, including self-reported satisfaction with training, in a cohort of postgraduate doctors in Sri Lanka. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted among medical and surgical postgraduate trainees enrolled at Post Graduate Institute of Medicine, University of Colombo. A self-administered questionnaire including the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale was used for data collection. SPSS version 26 was used for analysis, and associations were analysed using Chi Square and logistic regression. Results The response rate was 75.3% (n = 201). Of the study population, 9% (n = 18) experienced few impostor characteristics, 51.7% (n = 104) experienced moderate impostor characteristics, 38.8% (n = 78) experienced frequent impostor characteristics and 0.5% (n = 1) experienced intense impostor characteristics. The mean IP value was 55.55 (SD-12.03), in the category of moderate IP. Significant associations were seen between IP and sociodemographic factors of being single, lack of friendships outside medicine and improvement in financial status related to medical profession (p

Impostorism is characterized by feelings of self-doubt regarding one's competence, ability, and deservingness of past achievements, despite evidence of competence. Impostorism has been shown to be associated with numerous adverse academic and psychosocial outcomes. However, there is limited research investigating these relationships within the general undergraduate student population. Furthermore, there is a lack of research examining the link between impostorism and academic help-seeking. The current study aims to fill the gaps by investigating the roles of impostorism and academic help-seeking attitudes and behaviors in undergraduate students' academic sense of belonging and college completion intention. A total of 2,808 diverse groups of undergraduate students from two universities in the U.S. were recruited in the study. Regression analyses demonstrated that higher levels of impostorism were linked to negative attitudes toward academic help-seeking, increased academic help-seeking avoidance behaviors, decreased academic sense of belonging, and lower intention to complete undergraduate studies. Additionally, mediation analyses revealed academic help-seeking attitudes and behaviors as the mediating factors through which impostorism affects academic sense of belonging and college completion intention. Implications and future directions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Help-seeking behavior requires both components of metacognition—monitoring (being aware of the need for help) and control (initiating the help-seeking action). Difficulties in initiating help-seeking, therefore, can be indicative of a metacognitive breakdown, for instance, when a student believes that a gap in knowledge is something to hide. To explore the relationship between knowing that one needs help and actually seeking it, we examined the potential influences of impostorism, which refers to the feeling of being a "fraud", despite one's objective accomplishments. Participants were asked to solve math reasoning and verbal reasoning insight problems, while also being given a "help" button that could be pressed at any time in order to get the solution. Results showed that, overall, students were more likely to ask for help with math than verbal reasoning problems—help also correlated with boosted performance. There was also a slight indication that individuals who scored relatively high on impostorism were numerically less likely to seek help and waited longer to do so for the math problems. Our findings suggest that a fear of being exposed as an impostor may hinder one's help-seeking behaviors, especially in more challenging subjects, such as math. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The impostor phenomenon (IP) is the tendency to attribute success to external factors rather than to one’s abilities. It is frequent among students and has a negative impact on their wellbeing. This study aimed to assess the occurrence and mental health factors associated with IP in medical students. Methods: Cross-sectional study of University of Khartoum Medical students (December 2021–January 2022), using convenience sampling. We collected the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS), Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4: anxiety and depression), 2-item Maslach B burnout Inventory (MBI), and Single-Item Self-Esteem Scale (SISE). Data was analyzed using SPSS with correlation analyses, linear regression, and Chi-square tests. Results: Among 409 medical students, the impostor phenomenon (IP) prevalence was 52.8% (216 students), with a mean CIPS score of 63.37 ± 17.02. IP was more common in females (71.8%) and students aged 19–21 years (40.7%). Anxiety (41.6%), depression (48.7%), and burnout (39.6% emotional exhaustion; 26.9% depersonalization) were prevalent, with higher rates in females. Regression analysis showed significant predictors of IP, including burnout (+1.32 points per unit, p < 0.001), perfectionism (+0.86 points per unit, p < 0.001), parental overprotection (+2.43 points per unit, p < 0.001), and depression (+2.90 points, p = 0.024), while self-esteem showed a negative association (−4.19 points per unit, p < 0.001). Gender differences were observed in three CIPS items, with stronger female endorsements. Conclusions: IP is prevalent and linked to family dynamics, personality traits, and mental health issues. Efforts to increase awareness and facilitate IP management should be implemented.

Impostorism and knowledge-hiding behaviors negatively impact employees and organizational performance. This study examines the association between impostor leaders and knowledge hiding (evasive hiding, playing dumb, and rationalized hiding). Attachment avoidance is discussed as a mediator between impostor leaders and knowledge-hiding. For quantitative analyses, this study collected the data from 429 individuals with two time lags by sharing the survey instrument link on different organizations' randomly selected official media pages. After obtaining approval from the administrators of these pages, leaders and subordinates from these organizations were asked to participate in the study. The partial least squares structural equation modeling method is employed with Smartpls-4 software for data analyses. The findings indicate that impostor leaders promote knowledge hiding in subordinates. However, impostor leaders highly promote rationalized hiding behavior in subordinates. Attachment avoidance mediates the relationship between the impostor leader and knowledge-hiding behaviors. However, the highest mediation relationship exists between an impostor leader and playing dumb behavior in subordinates. This study strengthens the generalizability of the social exchange theory. The implications mentioned in this study are beneficial in understanding and dealing with the Impostorism and knowledge-hiding phenomena.

The literature on abusive supervision continues to link it to multiple negative workplace outcomes. Yet, much work remains in unraveling the pathways linking abusive supervision to employees' responses to the perceived abuse. The present study investigated the moderating effects of the impostor phenomenon on employees' discretionary behaviors when abusive supervision is perceived. Findings from two studies reveal that employees who experience high levels of impostorism feelings indicate they may be more likely to engage in organizational citizenship behaviors and refrain from counterproductive work behaviors than employees who experience low levels of impostorism feelings. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A high proportion of mental healthcare professionals experience burnout, which can impair wellbeing, lead to job withdrawal, and negatively impact client care. This study investigated the role of uncertainty tolerance, impostorism and psychological inflexibility in burnout in mental health clinicians. The sample consisted of 252 Australian mental health professionals, aged between 23 and 70 years (M = 38.87, SD = 10.65) and comprised primarily of psychologists (71.4.%). Participants completed a cross-sectional survey measuring burnout, dispositional intolerance of uncertainty, client care intolerance of uncertainty, psychological flexibility and impostorism. Hierarchical multiple regression was used to predict burnout. The regression model was significant and explained 47% of the variance in burnout. The predictor variables that contributed significantly to the model were dispositional intolerance of uncertainty, client care intolerance of uncertainty and psychological inflexibility. Gender, age, years of experience and impostorism did not contribute significantly to the model. Intervention programs that specifically target dispositional intolerance of uncertainty, client care intolerance of uncertainty and psychological inflexibility may offer the potential to decrease burnout in mental health professionals. What is already known about this topic: (1) Burnout in mental health professionals is common and has negative consequences for client care. (2) Mental health professional's capacity for uncertainty has implications for their coping, with low tolerance of uncertainty linked to anxiety, stress and burnout. (3) Psychological flexibility in mental health professionals is protective and reduces the risk of emotional burnout. What this topic adds: (1) Burnout in mental health professionals was predicted by intolerance of uncertainty in daily life, intolerance of uncertainty in client care, and psychological flexibility. (2) Mental health professionals in our study with clinically high levels of burnout were less tolerant of uncertainty, psychologically inflexible and felt like an imposter. (3) Findings may support the application of interventions to prevent burnout in mental health professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims and objective: To identify the prevalence and severity of impostor phenomenon and burnout in newly licensed registered nurses, map the current literature on impostor phenomenon in nursing, and identify related factors affecting the new nurse's transition to practice. Background: Impostor phenomenon is an internalised intellectual phoniness resulting in persistent self‐doubt despite prior success. It can evoke feelings of emotional exhaustion associated with burnout, negatively affecting employee retention. Due to changes in nursing education resulting from COVID‐19, self‐doubt and uncertainty among new nurses are expected to be heightened, leading to burnout which adversely effects nurse well‐being, patient care and retention. Design: The scoping review follows the methodological framework developed by Arksey and O'Malley (2005) and the Reporting Checklist for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA‐ScR) guidelines. Methods: The literature search was conducted utilising PubMed, CINAHL and PsycINFO. Inclusion criteria were studies published between 2011 and 2021, written in English, peer‐reviewed, and focused on newly licensed registered nurses. Eighteen articles were reviewed. Results: Studies on impostor phenomenon in nursing are limited to nursing students and clinical nurse specialists. Prevalence of impostor feelings in these populations range from 36% to 75%, and 12.3% to 46% of new nurses report burnout. Impostor feelings arise from role ambiguity, lack of self‐compassion, transitions, and minimal clinical experience. Burnout was associated with stress, feeling unprepared, inadequate socialisation, and lack of self‐compassion. Overlap in these factors could increase impostor feelings and burnout in new nurses. Conclusions: Effects of impostor phenomenon and burnout can negatively impact the well‐being of the new nurse. Currently, no studies simultaneously examine impostor phenomenon and burnout in new nurses. Further research on the relationship between these phenomena should be conducted. Relevance to clinical practice: Understanding the impact of impostor phenomenon and burnout on new nurses could help mitigate challenges they face transitioning into practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Investigate the prevalence and contextualize the relationship of impostor phenomenon (IP) and ambiguity tolerance (AT) in practicing physical therapists (PTs). Methods: Online survey including demographic questions, Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS), and Tolerance of Ambiguity Scale (TAS). Descriptive analyses assessed (N = 422) demographic data, CIPS, and TAS scores. Chi-square tests determined distribution across demographic variables. Kruskal-Wallis tests assessed differences between CIPS and TAS. Age was a proxy for career stage in Pearson productmoment correlations to assess relationships between CIPS and TAS. Results: In practicing PTs (M age = 42.12, SD = 12.34), moderate (48.6%; n = 205) to frequent (26.8%; n = 113) IP feelings were prevalent, but only 31.5% (n = 133) were true impostors. Significant differences exist in clinical experience for CIPS, H(7, n = 422) = 67.82, p <.001 and TAS, H(7, n = 422) = 21.79, p= .003. Most PTs tolerate ambiguity (M = 54.93, SD = 8.19). A moderate negative correlation between age and CIPS, r = -.36, p <.001 and a small negative correlation between age and TAS, r=-.19, p <.001 exists. Age accounts for 13% of the variance per IP and 3.6% variance per TAS score. A small positive relationship exists between CIPS and TAS, r = .10, p <.05. Conclusions: Practicing PTs experience moderate to frequent IP and are ambiguity tolerant. Clinical experience is inversely related to IP and AT. Almost half of early-career PTs feel like impostors, which can lead to decreased job satisfaction, burnout, psychological distress, feelings of selfdoubt, and depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Impostorism, a phenomenon whereby a person perceives that the role they occupy is beyond their capabilities and puts them at risk of exposure as a "fake," has attracted plentiful attention in the empirical literature and popular media. However, despite evidence that impostorism is frequently experienced by people in leadership positions, there has been little consideration of why this happens. In this theoretical article, we explain why formal leadership roles—roles that are characterized by elevated expectations, high visibility, and high levels of responsibility—are fertile ground for impostorism experiences. We also discuss how the associated self-conscious emotions of shame and fear, can increase leaders' risk-aversion and enhance leader role performance, yet at the same time drive emotional exhaustion, and reduce their motivation to lead. This can ultimately inhibit leaders from seeking, claiming, and thriving in leadership roles. We offer individual-, dyadic-, and organization-level contextual characteristics that can either enhance or reduce this phenomenon. We also discuss how supportive organizations can mitigate leadership impostorism. Furthermore, we highlight how women and minority-status leaders may be more vulnerable to this experience and conclude by suggesting the practical implications of the leader impostorism phenomenon for individuals and organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Physician burnout is an issue that has come to the forefront in the past decade. While many factors contribute to burnout the impact of impostorism and self-doubt has largely been ignored. We investigated the relationship of anxiety and impostorism to burnout in postgraduate medical learners. Postgraduate learners in four diverse training programs: Family Medicine (FM), Paediatric Medicine (PM), Anesthesiology (AN), and General Surgery (GS) were surveyed to identify the incidence of impostorism (IP), anxiety, and burnout. IP, anxiety, and burnout were evaluated using the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS), Maslach Burnout Inventory-Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS), and the General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) questionnaires, respectively. Burnout was defined as meeting burnout criteria on all three domains. Relationships between IP, anxiety, and burnout were explored. Two hundred and sixty-nine residents responded to the survey (response rate 18.8%). Respondents were distributed evenly between specialties (FM = 24.9%, PM = 33.1%, AN = 20.4%, GS = 21.6%). IP was identified in 62.7% of all participants. The average score on the CIPS was 66.4 (SD = 14.4), corresponding to 'frequent feelings of impostorism.' Female learners were at higher risk for IP (RR = 1.27, 95% CI: 1.03–1.57). Burnout, as defined by meeting burnout criteria on all three subscales, was detected in 23.3% of respondents. Significant differences were seen in burnout between specialties (p = 0.02). GS residents were more likely to experience burnout (31.7%) than PM and AN residents (26.7 and 10.0%, respectively, p = 0.02). IP was an independent risk factor for both anxiety (RR = 3.64, 95% CI:1.96–6.76) and burnout (RR = 1.82, 95% CI: 1.07–3.08). Impostorism is commonly experienced by resident learners independent of specialty and contributes to learner anxiety and burnout. Supervisors and Program Directors must be aware of the prevalence of IP and the impact on burnout. Initiatives to mitigate IP may improve resident learner wellness and decrease burnout in postgraduate learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Imposter syndrome is the fear of being discovered as an intellectual fraud. It is an internal experience of believing that you are not as competent as others perceive you to be. It lowers a person’s inner self-confidence, self-esteem that impedes work performance and this phenomenon is more prevalent among medical students. However, talking openly about it with peers, rooting positive thoughts, and building confidence help us to the appropriate reality of our situation and counter our negative self-talk.

The goal of this longitudinal study was to explore the familial and personal characteristics that are potentially shared by two related phenomena observed in students: negative bias in self-evaluation of academic competence and impostorism. Specifically, this study aimed to examine whether the same set of characteristics (parental overprotection, conditional parental support, test anxiety, concern over mistakes and self-esteem) could be combined to predict both phenomena in high school students. To do so, these characteristics were first measured in 648 7th and 8th graders. In the three following years, students' negative bias and impostorism were assessed. A latent profile analysis revealed a two-class model of characteristics. One group presented a "negative" pattern characterized by high parental overprotection, conditional parental support, test anxiety and concern over mistakes, and low self-esteem. Another group presented a "positive" pattern: students' scores on all familial and personal variables were more favorable. As hypothesized, membership in the "negative" profile predicted negative bias and impostorism at T2, T3, and T4. This highlights the principle of multifinality and suggests that the two phenomena might be distinct aspects of a single broader issue such as a tendency toward a biased interpretation of information about one's own competence, or self-protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The aging process may be affected by negative life events as well as social factors. Though psychological aspects of the aging process in veterans have been the focus of considerable research, decorated veterans have been scarcely investigated in this domain. The current study sought to assess psychiatric distress (PD) levels among aging decorated and non-decorated veterans' (DVs and n-DVs, respectively) and examine its association with the maladaptive perception that others will identify a high-achieving person as an impostor (i.e. impostorism) and perceived social isolation (i.e. loneliness). Methods: Two groups of Israeli veterans of the 1973 Yom Kippur War, DVs (n = 75) and n-DVs (n = 73), were assessed for PD and combat exposure in middle adulthood (1991; T1); in later life (2018; T2) they were assessed for negative life events, impostorism, loneliness and PD. Results: Impostorism, loneliness and PD were all inter-correlated. DVs evinced less PD at T1 and T2 than n-DVs but similar levels of impostorism and loneliness at T2. Nevertheless, negative life events, impostorism and loneliness explained PD at T2, with loneliness being more significant, especially among the n-DVs. Combat exposure did not explain variances in late-life PD. Conclusion: Aging DVs seem to be less vulnerable to late-life PD than n-DVs, and impostorism and loneliness may be important factors in this respect. Being the first study to investigate aging DVs' mental health and impostorism among aging veterans, the findings further underscore the clinical imperative of psychosocial factors in understanding aging veterans' mental health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impostor phenomenon is a pervasive psychological experience of perceived intellectual and professional fraudulence. It is not a diagnosable condition yet observed in clinical and normal populations. Increasingly, impostorism research has expanded beyond clinical and into applied settings. However, to date, a systematic review examining the methodological quality of impostorism measures used to conduct such research has yet to be carried out. This systematic review examines trait impostor phenomenon measures and evaluates their psychometric properties against a quality assessment framework. Systematic searches were carried out on six electronic databases, seeking original empirical studies examining the conceptualization, development, or validation of self-report impostor phenomenon scales. A subsequent review of reference lists also included two full-text dissertations. Predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria were specified to select the final 18 studies in the review sample. Of the studies included, four measures of the impostor phenomenon were identified and their psychometric properties assessed against the quality appraisal tool—Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale, Harvey Impostor Scale, Perceived Fraudulence Scale, and Leary Impostor Scale. The findings often highlighted that studies did not necessarily report poor psychometric properties; rather an absence of data and stringent assessment criteria resulted in lower methodological ratings. Recommendations for future research are made to address the conceptual clarification of the construct's dimensionality, to improve future study quality and to enable better discrimination between measures.

Those who suffer from impostorism experience feelings of fraudulence, worrying that they are fooling others about their abilities and that they will eventually be exposed. While prior research emphasizes the trait-like durability of impostor personalities, we argue that impostorism is sensitive to experiences in proximate social environments, such as graduate school programs. The authors examine the relationship between perceived characteristics of graduate school program environments and students' impostor feelings using survey data from a large university (N = 1,476). Results demonstrate that students' perceptions of lower-quality mentorship, increased competition, and increased isolation are associated with more frequent impostor fears. The authors discuss the consequences of impostorism in academia and review implications for program policies and future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impostor phenomenon is a pervasive psychological experience of perceived intellectual and professional fraudulence. It is not a diagnosable condition yet observed in clinical and normal populations. Increasingly, impostorism research has expanded beyond clinical and into applied settings. However, to date, a systematic review examining the methodological quality of impostorism measures used to conduct such research has yet to be carried out. This systematic review examines trait impostor phenomenon measures and evaluates their psychometric properties against a quality assessment framework. Systematic searches were carried out on six electronic databases, seeking original empirical studies examining the conceptualization, development, or validation of self-report impostor phenomenon scales. A subsequent review of reference lists also included two full-text dissertations. Predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria were specified to select the final 18 studies in the review sample. Of the studies included, four measures of the impostor phenomenon were identified and their psychometric properties assessed against the quality appraisal tool—Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale, Harvey Impostor Scale, Perceived Fraudulence Scale, and Leary Impostor Scale. The findings often highlighted that studies did not necessarily report poor psychometric properties; rather an absence of data and stringent assessment criteria resulted in lower methodological ratings. Recommendations for future research are made to address the conceptual clarification of the construct's dimensionality, to improve future study quality and to enable better discrimination between measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Assessing resident well-being is becoming increasingly important from a programmatic standpoint. Two measures that have been used to assess this are the Clance Impostor Scale (CIS) and the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS). However, little is known about the relationship between the two phenomena.Objectives: To explore the prevalence and association between impostorism and burnout syndrome in a sample of internal medicine residents.Design: Anonymous, cross-sectional postal survey.Participants: Forty-eight internal medicine residents (postgraduate year [PGY] 1-3) at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry (62.3% response rate).Measurements and Main Results: Short demographic questionnaire, CIS and MBI-HSS. Impostorism and burnout syndrome were identified in 43.8% and 12.5% of residents, respectively. With the exception of a negative correlation between CIS scores and the MBI's personal accomplishment subscale (r = -.30; 95% CI -.54 to -.02), no other significant relations were identified. Foreign-trained residents were more likely to score as impostors (odds ratio [OR] 10.7; 95% CI 1.2 to 98.2) while senior residents were more likely to experience burnout syndrome (OR 16.5 95% CI 1.6 to 168.5).Conclusions: Both impostorism and burnout syndrome appear to be threats to resident well-being in our program. The lack of relationship between the two would suggest that programs and researchers wishing to address the issue of resident distress should consider using both measures. The finding that foreign-trained residents appear to be more susceptible to impostorism warrants further study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rationale: Aging veterans often suffer from increased vulnerability, manifested among other things in old subjective age and poor perceived health. Though research has documented the contribution of trauma related variables to these negative appraisals, their associations with impostorism (i.e., the subjective experience that one is less adequate than others perceive) remain unexamined. Objective: Filling this gap, this study explored the relations between impostorism and subjective age and perceived health among aging combat veterans. Method: The study was conducted among 146 Israeli veterans of the 1973 Yom Kippur War. Participants were assessed for combat exposure, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and health-related behaviors during middle adulthood (1991; T1), and for subjective age, perceived health, impostorism, PTSD symptoms, and depressive symptoms during old age (2018; T2). Results: The veterans' impostorism was associated with relatively old subjective age and poor perceived health, above and beyond the effects of age, health-related behaviors, combat exposure, depressive symptoms, and PTSD symptoms. Conclusions: The current results suggest that impostorism may contribute to veterans' stress and negatively affect their evaluations regarding age and health. • Veteran impostorism is perceived self-fraudulence. • Impostorism was associated with negative perceived health and older subjective age. • Impostorism explained variance in perceived health beyond PTSD and depression. • Impostorism explained variance in subjective age beyond PTSD and depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Avoidant attachment is associated with numerous negative interpersonal outcomes. The current study tested whether self-perceptions of impostorism intensify negative interpersonal outcomes of attachment-related avoidance. One hundred and twenty-nine male Israeli veterans of the 1973 Yom Kippur War were assessed using self-report measures of attachment orientations (avoidance, anxiety), impostorism, beliefs about others' benevolence, marital quality, and loneliness. As hypothesized, hierarchical regressions revealed significant interactions of impostorism and attachment avoidance after accounting for main effects, showing that impostorism intensified the association between avoidant attachment, on the one hand, and more negative beliefs about others' benevolence, lower marital quality, and heightened loneliness, on the other hand. The current study is among the first to systematically assess the relational implications of impostorism and suggests that high impostorism is a risk factor for aversive outcomes in the interpersonal realm, especially among highly attachment-avoidant people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use two studies to explore how individuals manage perceptions of impostorism as they train for their future careers. Drawing on interviews with 20 professionals in training, our qualitative analysis uncovered various tactics (both constructive and maladaptive) used by these individuals to cope with perceived impostorism. Among these tactics, seeking social support from individuals outside of their program peer group (e.g., professors, family, friends, and significant others) appeared to be more effective in dampening perceptions of impostorism than seeking support from peers within their program. We use Conservation of Resources Theory (COR) to develop testable hypotheses about this observed relationship between different sources of social support and perceptions of impostorism, and find support for this pattern of results in a group of 213 professionals in training. We also discuss the implications for research on impostorism, COR, social support, and early career entry. • An investigation of professionals in training with perceptions of impostorism • Qualitative study of 20 interviews uncovering various methods of coping with impostorism • Survey of 213 participants investigating sources of social support affecting impostorism • Social support from organizational peers is positively related to impostorism. • Social support from outside the organizational peer group is negatively related to impostorism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Imposter phenomenon (IP) is characterized by chronic feelings of self-doubt and inadequacy in otherwise capable individuals. IP sufferers are unable to internalize their achievements and as a result suffer from depression, anxiety and low self-esteem. The current study was designed to find out the prevalence of IP among final year dental students and house officers and its association with gender predisposition in order to raise awareness and to improve teaching methodologies. A cross-sectional, self-reported, questionnaire-based study was conducted from December, 2018 to February, 2019 in various randomly selected dental teaching institutions of Lahore. Three hundred forty five individuals took part in this study. Out of which, 117 (33.9%) were males and 228 (66.1%) were females. 203 (58.8%) were students and 142(41.2%) were House Officers. According to Clance imposter phenomenon scoring, 51 (14.8%) individuals had few IP characteristics. 243 (70.4%) had frequent to moderate IP feelings. Whereas, 51 (14.8%) had intense IP experiences. A considerable proportion of individuals suffer from the Impostor Phenomenon. Regarding gender predisposition, males and females were found out to be affected differently. It is of paramount importance to address this phenomenon in order to improve the psychological well-being of dentists. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Impostor phenomenon (IP) characterizes feelings of self-doubt coupled with feelings that achievements were based on luck and a fear of being discovered as an intellectual fraud. Recently, studies have focused on IP in medical trainees and its association with burnout; however, this research has not yet been conducted on surgeons. This study addresses that gap by investigating the prevalence of IP and burnout in general surgeons and surgery residents., Design: Participants completed two unlinked, blinded surveys. The first survey included demographics and scholarly activity, while the second included the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS) and a validated, single-item burnout score., Setting: Hennepin County Medical Center and University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN., Participants: General surgeons and general surgery residents at two teaching hospitals, one community-based (N = 46) and one university-based (N = 42)., Results: The majority of both surgeons and residents were male, Caucasian, and married. Residents scored significantly higher compared to faculty in nearly half of CIPS questions. The overall CIPS score was significantly higher in trainees as well (61 vs 51, p = 0.017). Burnout did not differ significantly between trainees (30%) and faculty (41%) (p = 0.545). We found no significant differences in gender or years of practice in those with clinical IP (CIPS >62), and logistic regression analysis showed burnout as the only significant association for clinical IP symptoms (OR 3.95, p = 0.017)., Conclusions: Contrary to studies in other medical fields, female general surgery faculty and trainees were no more likely than males to display characteristics of IP. Residents did; however, score higher than faculty on overall CIPS score. While we cannot determine how burnout and IP directly impact each other, our study shows that both faculty and trainees experiencing burnout are more likely to report symptoms of IP., (Copyright © 2018 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)