Doubting yourself sometimes allows you to question yourself and evolve. But like everything, excess can have the opposite effect. Thus, when an employee begins to express fears about his abilities, he can face what is called the “impostor syndrome“, provocative of fatigueof the’dissatisfaction and theinability to maintain a healthy balance between work and personal life. This is revealed by a study presented at the beginning of July over there Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP).
At work and at home
A total of 463 people working at least 20 hours a week and having held the same job for at least 6 months were interviewed. And according to researchers from the Universities of Houston-Clear Lake, South Florida and Houston who conducted the research, those with impostor syndrome find it hard to believe in their own success and tend to overcompensate. A phenomenon that has strong emotional consequences.
In fact, these individuals are exhausted, and are more likely to find themselves torn between their roles at work and at home. And thus, to be less satisfied with their family life. “The most important point of our study was to show that employees who constantly feel like they don’t belong not only experience harmful effects at work, but also at homeexplains Lisa Sublett, assistant professor of psychology who participated in the research. […] They are at greater risk of experiencing high levels of burnout, job dissatisfaction, and work-family conflict.”
“If I can do it, anyone can”
Scientists have tried to identify indicators of an impostor syndrome. They thus include perfectionist tendencies, such as overpreparing and overestimating errors. Affected people use phrases such as “I was lucky”, “I was in the right place at the right time” and “If I can do it, anyone can” to describe their work. , rather than acknowledging their successes. However, these behaviors are particularly observable among “high-potential employees”.
To mitigate these feelings, the researchers invite team leaders to help their colleagues by giving them frequent feedback on their work. A workshop that enables participants to recognize and interrupt this impostor syndrome is also in development. Preliminary results are promising, according to Lisa Sublett. “Constantly feeling like an intruder, ruminating on mistakes and maintaining perfectionism at work is very draining, so it’s important to study this to understand the negative implications”she concludes.
Read also :
- Unusual: perfectionism makes us sick
- Perfectionism harms sexuality
- Handling: how to spot it
