Who is the real fraud here? Neo-liberal social work and the imposter phenomenon

Abstract

The neo-liberalisation of social work has been heavily criticised, with value conflicts and different interpretations of the purpose of social work being key aspects of this. However, little research has considered the impact of the neo-liberalisation of social work on an individual level, understanding how this ideology impacts day-to-day practice. This article uses the imposter phenomenon as a proxy issue to understand the impact of neo-liberalism on social workers. Factors that contribute to, and diminish experiences of, the imposter phenomenon are identified, and links are made between these and the key aspects of neo-liberalism. Through establishing the impact of the imposter phenomenon on individuals, strategies to overcome this are suggested. However, it is argued that without structural and ideological development, the tensions within social work will remain.

There Is No “One Right Way”: Perfectionism, Imposterism, and Well-being in Child Life Training and Practice

“…Future research should investigate systemic factors that may contribute to perfectionism and imposterism for child life students and professionals. For example, social workers are at greater risk for IP when they do not receive adequate practice supervision or constructive feedback and when they are evaluated mainly on measurable outcomes of their job rather than interpersonal skills (Urwin, 2023). Environmental mastery is negatively correlated with imposterism (September et al, 2001), and future studies should address perceived adequacy of training for the myriad skills required of CCLS.…”