Achievement Orientation and the Impostor Phenomenon among College Students

King, Julie E.; Cooley, Eileen L.

doi:10.1006/ceps.1995.1019

Cited by 124 publications

(120 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…However, there is some evidence that higher levels of impostor feelings are associated with GPA for women but not men (King and Cooley 1995). We speculate that given differences in gender socialization, men may be less impacted by impostorism than women.…”

Section: Impostor Phenomenonmentioning

confidence: 70%

“…Consequently, impostors experience self-imposed pressure to perform well, to meet expectations, demonstrate that they are deserving of success, and to disconfirm their own negative view of themselves. Higher levels of impostorism have also been linked to higher GPA (King and Cooley 1995). Impostors tend to have higher grades because of the self-imposed pressure to perform well.…”

Section: Impostor Phenomenonmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Roles of Gender Stigma Consciousness, Impostor Phenomenon and Academic Self-Concept in the Academic Outcomes of Women and Men

et al. 2015

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The question of gender differences in academic outcomes has been widely reported and debated. Recent data suggest more similarities than differences in achievement, yet also show males being more likely to make ability attributions for grades while females are more likely to make effort attributions. Thus, it may be more useful to focus on underlying factors and psychological processes that are gendered and influence academic outcomes. The primary purpose of this study was to test a hypothesized model of academic outcomes in a sample of U.S. undergraduate women and men in the Southwest (345 women, 146 men). Participants were recruited from an educational psychology subject pool and completed an online survey. A hypothesized path model was tested that linked gender stigma consciousness to impostor phenomenon, and linked impostor phenomenon to the academic outcomes of disengagement and grade point average (GPA) through academic self-concept. Alternative models were also tested that included 1) academic self-concept predicting impostor feelings, 2) impostor feelings predicting gender stigma consciousness, and 3) GPA predicting academic self-concept. Results revealed the hypothesized model fit the data reasonably well across men and women while the alternative models resulted in a poorer fit. However, there were notable differences in some of the paths. The path from impostor phenomenon to GPA was significant for women but not men, while the path from academic selfconcept to disengagement was significant for men but not women. Theoretical and practical implications regarding the gendered role of impostor feelings in grades are discussed.

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Section: Impostor Phenomenonmentioning

confidence: 70%

Section: Impostor Phenomenonmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Roles of Gender Stigma Consciousness, Impostor Phenomenon and Academic Self-Concept in the Academic Outcomes of Women and Men

et al. 2015

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“…The study's Hmong American students may have felt pressure to uphold an even greater level of academic prowess consistent with a model minority stereotype, and in turn questioned their intellectual ability and subsequent welcome or belonging on campus. Their imposter feelings may have also stemmed from familial pressures (King & Cooley, 1995;Supple et al, 2010), as families and communities encourage them to stabilize, advance (Lee, 1997), and propel others economically and socially (Hutchinson, 1997) via higher education. Such familial perceived pressures and assumed responsibilities, which have been associated with increased anxiety and stress (King & Cooley, 1995), may nonetheless result in students' perceived uncertainty, despite their academic capabilities, to persist academically.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Indeed, students' feelings of phoniness extend beyond their cognitive abilities (e.g., grade point average) to their sense or perception of self (Clance & Imes, 1978;Langford & Clance, 1993) or even wellness (Cokley, McLain, Enciso, & Martinez, 2012). For example, King and Cooley (1995) found that undergraduates with a greater orientation toward family achievement had increased levels of feeling like an imposter. Both perfectionism and imposter feelings have yet to be explored fully within the higher educational setting, however these feelings may be evident given their strong family connection (Xiong & Lam, 2013), educational experiences (Xiong, 2012) perception of parental expectations for success (Supple, McCoy, & Wang, 2010), and community expectations as first-generation college students (Lee, 1997).…”

Section: Psychological Dimension -Self-beliefsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Kawm Ntawv Qib Siab Understanding the psychosociocultural educational experiences of Hmong American undergraduates

Lin¹,

Her²,

Gloria³

2015

Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement

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Using a psychosociocultural framework, this study examined the educational experiences of 85 Hmong American undergraduates attending a predominantly-White university. Differences in class standing indicated that upper-division students reported higher confidence in college-related tasks than their lower-division counterparts, yet the upperdivision students perceived a less-welcoming university environment that was incongruent with their cultural values than the lower-division undergraduates. Peer support, college self-efficacy and cultural congruity were salient variables in understanding Hmong American undergraduate's educational experiences. The study's limitations, future research directions, and implications for college administrators and faculty are discussed.

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“…Impostors feel that they are less competent than others believe them to be--that they are truly incompetent and have fooled others into believing otherwise through sheer luck or effort (King & Cooley, 1995;Langford & Clance, 1993). Their sense of pretense results in generalized anxiety, lack of self-confidence, and often depression.…”

Section: The Paradox As Personalitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Paradoxical self-esteem and selectivity in the processing of social information.

Tafarodi¹

1998

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

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Paradoxical self-esteem is defined as contrasting levels of self-liking and self-competence. Consideration of the social and motivational implications of this uncommon form of self-esteem suggests that heightened selectivity in the processing of social information may be behind its persistence. Two experiments were conducted to confirm the prediction of heightened selectivity in paradoxicals. As expected, those paradoxically low in self-liking were more negatively biased in their memory for personality feedback (Study 1) and interpretation of valuatively ambiguous phrases (Study 2) than were their counterparts who shared the same low self-liking but were also low in self-competence. Symmetrical with this result, those paradoxically high in self-liking exhibited a heightened positive bias relative to those who were high in both self-liking and self-competence. The findings are discussed in relation to attitudes and motivation. And Richard Cory, one calm summer night, Went home and put a bullet through his head.

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Achievement Orientation and the Impostor Phenomenon among College Students

Cited by 124 publications

References 3 publications

The Roles of Gender Stigma Consciousness, Impostor Phenomenon and Academic Self-Concept in the Academic Outcomes of Women and Men

The Roles of Gender Stigma Consciousness, Impostor Phenomenon and Academic Self-Concept in the Academic Outcomes of Women and Men

Kawm Ntawv Qib Siab Understanding the psychosociocultural educational experiences of Hmong American undergraduates

Paradoxical self-esteem and selectivity in the processing of social information.

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