Do Imposter Syndrome And Know-It-All Personality Have Anything In Common?
Synopsis
In this article, I share my personal thoughts on Imposter Syndrome. Imposter Syndrome can be perceived as humility to an unhealthy extreme. It may share something in common with the know-it-all personality which is “confidence” to another unhealthy extreme.
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Why am I writing about psychology all of a sudden?
If you have read my articles before, I usually only write about data-related topics. Data Science is my field of work. Meanwhile, psychology is my field of study.
The other reason is a few of my friends whom I deeply care about have low self-esteem issues. They are smart and talented, but they don’t feel worthy of good career opportunities, personal relationships, or other good things in life. It hurts me to see my friends struggle with self-limiting beliefs.
What is Imposter Syndrome?
Simply put, high achievers, typically those in under-represented groups, feel they are less than their achievements. Scientists (e.g. Kolligian & Sternberg, 1991) use the term “Perceived Fraudulence” to describe this self-judgment misalignment.
