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Definition:
Definition:
a psychological pattern whereby an individual doubts their accomplishments and has a fear of being exposed as a fraud
-Brown.Edu
A Brief History:
A Brief History:
The term was created by Clance & Imes (1978) in their research on high-achieving women.
Their paper concluded that women were uniquely impacted by Imposter Syndrome, but Clance later published a paper acknowledging men's experience with the syndrome.
Clance developed an Imposter Syndrome Test
Now, it is said to believe that 70% of people will experience "imposter feelings" at some point in their lives. (Gravois)
Common Effects:
Common Effects:
reject objective evidence of their successes
worry excessively over mistakes
results in neuroticism (Bernard et al., 2002),
achievement orientation (King & Cooley, 1995)
perfectionism (Ferrari & Thompson, 2006)
feelings of guilt, shame, frustration, and burnout (Villwock et al., 2016).
Imposter Syndrome in Relationships
Imposter Syndrome in Relationships
Impostor Syndrome isn't always found in the workplace or an academic setting. It can also be found buried at the root of many failed relationships (both romantic and platonic).
What does it look like? :
Feeling as if the other person is "out of your league".
Feeling like you need to be perfect or else the other will realize you aren't as "good" as you are perceived.
Feeling insecure or ashamed when you fail in front of the other person
Example:
SZA's hit song from her famed album, "Garden" portrays a woman (probably the artist herself) in a relationship. She sings about hoping her partner is who she thinks he is, because she isn't who she portrays herself to be. Assuming the singer isn't some sort of pathological murderer, this is an example of someone experiencing impostor syndrome. She feels like a fraud in her relationship. And her lyrics, "hope you never find out who I am, cause you'll never love me" perfectly exemplifies this. Additionally, her lyric preceding this holds her partner on a pedestal exclaiming that she "hopes [she] never "finds out who [they] really are". This sort of affection both leads to and perpetuates imposter syndrome.
"And hope you never find out who I really am,
'Cause you'll never love me"
-SZA
Example:
Disney's 2021 film, Encanto, is an imaginative story of a magical family. The main character, Mirabel, however, is not magical like the rest of her family. She struggles with feelings of worthiness and not belonging. Her grandmother, despite Mirabel's efforts, resents her for her lack of a gift and fears what it would mean for the family's safety and security. Mirabel's character exemplifies not only a victim of the impostor phenomenon but also a perpetuator of her experiences.
"I can't move the mountains
I can't make the flowers bloom
I can't take another night up in my room
Waiting on a miracle"
-Mirabel
For more info, definitions, and exampes of Impostor Syndrome, reference this video:
For more info, definitions, and exampes of Impostor Syndrome, reference this video:
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