Ethnic minority employees' experiences of the imposter syndrome

Ranautta, Harkierat Kaur (2024) Ethnic minority employees' experiences of the imposter syndrome. Doctoral thesis, Birkbeck, University of London.

Abstract

Imposter phenomenon (IP) describes experiences of feeling like a fraud and one’s failure to internalise achievements. IP is reported as a common experience including by ethnic minorities, indicating a potential adverse impact on their workplace experiences and career progression. This thesis combines findings from two studies which deepen the evidence base of ethnic minorities’ experiences of impostorism. A systematic literature review (n=15 studies) is the first to exclusively review and synthesise experiences and outcomes of IP within ethnic minority populations. Findings suggest a range of psychological and environmental factors contribute to one’s IP experience: feelings of not belonging, racism, discrimination and microaggressions, and perceptions of stereotypes around one’s minority group. To address the limitations of this review, such as the lack of diversity in the populations sampled, a qualitative study was conducted to investigate experiences of impostorism exclusively among South Asian employees. Fifteen employees were interviewed, and through Reflexive Thematic Analysis, five themes were identified: descriptions of IP, the impact of IP, the influence of hard work, a lack of belonging and inauthenticity. Adverse impacts of IP were identified, including the negative attitudinal impact towards one’s career, risk aversion and poor well-being. Findings suggest that IP likely prohibits the career progression of South Asian employees. Taken together, the SLR and empirical study findings provide novel insights into ethnic minority employees’ experiences of IP. These studies are, to the best of the author’s knowledge, the first to examine impostorism in ethnic minority employees and South Asian employees, respectively. Findings demonstrate promising evidence of the contributory role organisations play in ethnic minorities’ feelings of impostorism. This includes exclusionary organisational practices and behaviours, often subtle and implicit. Additionally, this thesis has identified internal identity-related factors, such as sociocultural norms, which influence IP experiences at work. Implications for theory, research and practice are discussed.

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