ESPERANTO
Fraudulent Feelings
An Article on Imposter Syndrome WORDS BY Selin Kaya @selinruby
Have you ever felt like you’re a fraud, had an overwhelming feeling that you’re undeserving of your successes, or felt that everything you’ve achieved boils down to luck? It sounds a bit grim, right? If you’ve felt these feelings, don’t panic. The good news is you’re not alone, and you’re definitely not an imposter. As I first sat down to write this piece, a wave of self-doubt overcame me. Do I really know enough to be writing about this at length? I’m used to writing reviews and essays — what makes me think I can pull off this article if I don’t know the first thing about psychology? How long will it be until someone sees through the cracks? Enter imposter syndrome (also referred to as the imposter phenomenon), originally coined by psychologists Suzanne Imes and Pauline Rose Clance in 1978 — a term characterised by the psychological experience where you believe your accomplishments were achieved not through genuine ability, but rather through luck or having manipulated people’s impressions. This phenomenon was first observed in highly successful women and university students who were unable to view themselves as competent and talented, despite the evidentiary proof of their achievements. Their successes were attributable to external forces such as personal charm or ability to meet other people’s expectations, instilling the notion of being an imposter or a fraud. However, despite this early research, imposter syndrome has been found to affect all people in equal numbers.
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