impostor phenomenon
the situation in which highly accomplished, successful individuals paradoxically believe they are frauds who ultimately will fail and be unmasked as incompetent. The phenomenon originally was described in relation to a group of female college students who, despite stellar grades and test scores, nonetheless felt that most or all of their achievements had somehow been the result of chance or error. Follow-up studies showed that men as well as women are susceptible to impostor feelings and that early family conflict and lack of parental support may play an etiological role. Clinical symptoms often are associated with the phenomenon as well, including generalized anxiety, depression, and diminished self-esteem and self-confidence. Several instruments to measure the phenomenon exist: The Harvey Impostor Phenomenon Scale (HIPS), developed in 1981 by U. S. clinical psychologist Joan C. Harvey, contains 14 self-descriptive statements to which participants
respond using a 7-point Likert scale of 0 (not at all true) to 6 (very true); the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS), developed in 1985 by U.S. clinical psychologist Pauline Rose Clance, comprises 20 self-descriptive statements to which participants respond using a 5-point Likert scale of 1 (not at all true) to 5 (very true); and the Perceived Fraudulence Scale (PFS), developed in 1991 by U.S. psychologists John Kolligian and Robert J. Sternberg (1949– ), includes 51 items and also uses a 7-point Likert-scale response format. Also called impostor syndrome. [introduced in 1978 by U.S. clinical psychologists Pauline Rose Clance and Suzanne A. Imes]