The Impostor Phenomenon

Historical Origin and Conceptual Definition

Although popularly referred to as a "syndrome," it is more accurately called a "phenomenon" or "experience," since it is not a recognized clinical disorder in diagnostic manuals.

The term was coined in 1978 by psychologists Pauline Clance and Suzanne Imes.

They observed a pattern in high-achieving academic and professional women who, despite having objective evidence of their success (degrees, awards, high grades), maintained an inner conviction that they were unintelligent and had deceived others.

The central definition is the feeling of intellectual fraud: the individual believes that he or she occupies a place that he or she does not deserve and lives in constant and distressing fear of being "discovered" or unmasked by his or her peers or superiors, despite the fact that reality proves his or her competence.

External Attribution of Success (Luck and Mistake)

A distinctive characteristic is the inability to internalize achievements. When a person with this profile succeeds, he does not think, "I succeeded because I have the ability." Instead, he attributes the outcome to unstable external factors.

The most common explanations are luck ("I was in the right place"), error ("The selection committee made a mistake in choosing me") or charm ("They like me and that's why they don't notice my incompetence").

This cognitive distortion prevents self-efficacy from being strengthened by experience.

It doesn't matter how many successes the person accumulates; if each one is labeled as a "fluke" or a "hoax," the sense of insecurity remains intact.

The Impostor Cycle

The phenomenon is perpetuated through a specific cycle. Faced with a task or challenge (e.g. a new work project), the person experiences immediate anxiety.

To manage it, he or she may react in two ways: with over-preparation (working much harder than necessary to avoid failure) or with procrastination followed by a final frantic effort.

When the task is successfully completed, the person feels temporary relief. However, he does not attribute the success to his ability.

If he over-prepared, he thinks, "I only succeeded because I overworked, not because of talent." If he procrastinated and succeeded, he thinks, "I got lucky again."

This reasoning reinforces th