Many people experience the impostor phenomenon at work: they believe that others overestimate their abilities and fear falling through the cracks as an 'impostor' sooner or later. Until now, impostorism was mainly seen as something personal, as a result of perfectionism or insecurity. VU organisational psychologist Sanne Feenstra investigated whether the work environment also plays a role in this. Feenstra shows that the impostor phenomenon is not only something people 'bring' to work, but is also reinforced by the work culture.
The study 'Are You Better than Me? Competitive Work Climates Fuel Impostorism via Upward Social Comparisons' was published in Social Psychological and Personality Science.
Feenstra investigated whether and why a competitive work culture leads to more impostorism .
"We found that people are more likely to feel like an impostor if they work in an environment where colleagues have to compete with each other a lot, for example for promotions or recognition. In such competitive work environments, people are more likely to compare themselves to colleagues who perform better, which makes them insecure about their own abilities. We saw this effect in both men and women and independent of their age, position and background," Feenstra said.
Feenstra's findings show that organisations themselves can influence the emergence of impostorism in their employees. This is important because more and more people - especially women and people from different cultural backgrounds - are struggling with doubts about their abilities at work. So instead of teaching employees to 'be more confident', organisations are better off scrutinising their work culture.
The study was conducted in collaboration with colleagues from University of Exeter (UK) & The Australian National University and The Global Institute for Women Leadership. The reason for this research is that impostorism is detrimental to employees' well-being and careers, as well as a threat to diversity in the workplace. Feenstra: "This research shows that impostorism is related to stress and burnout. And that people who are more likely to feel like an impostor are less likely to take on leadership roles."
Feenstra and colleagues show that the impostor phenomenon is not only in people themselves, but can actually be fuelled by the way organisations are set up. This offers opportunities to address the phenomenon through the working climate.
The impostor phenomenon is a well-known phenomenon and is often discussed in the media. It affects many people and has many negative consequences for people. The media often focuses on women suffering from it and how people should deal with it. Feenstra's research shows that culture in organisations where people work is also a major driver of the impostor phenomenon.