Impostor Syndrome; How Women Transform self-doubt to Claim Success (AAUW Webinar)

“Relieved and horrified at the same time…”

“There’s this constant self-criticism and fear of failure…”

“It doesn’t mean I’m a failure if I crash and burn…”

These were just some of the candid and thoughtful comments shared during the BU AAUW sponsored “Impostor Syndrome; How Women Transform self-doubt to Claim Success” webinar.

Led by Dr. Donald B. Scott and moderated by Dr. Lata Murti, the 35+ attendees engaged with featured speakers Dr. Ellen Belluomini and Dr. Kimberly Greene. Paired with a facilitated Q&A session led by Dr. Murti, Dr. Laura Galloway and Dr. Jalin B. Johnson, participants shared their experiences and asked questions of the panelists.

Drawing upon research conducted by Dr. Scott, based on the Impostor Syndrome construct developed by Dr. Pauline Clance and Dr. Suzanne Imes (1978), the group was able to achieve the following goals for the evening;

  • Learn more about Impostor Syndrome and its effect on women
  • Share success stories about women overcoming self-doubt and feelings of intellectual fraud
  • Receive and provide suggestions for learning how to cope with Impostor characteristics
  • Learn more about and exchange valuable resources
  • Normalize the experiences and feelings of an Impostor

The Impostor Syndrome: A construct that describes highly successful individuals who experience feelings of fraudulence, a fear of being exposed, and the inability to internalize actual success.

Three primary characteristics include an individual’s feelings of fear of evaluation, fear of not being able to repeat his or her success, and fear of being less capable than others.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *