Literature curated to highlight the effects of impostor phenomenon in emergency medicine, revealing its links to burnout and mental health issues.
Impostor phenomenon (IP) is characterized by persistent doubt in one's skills and accomplishments and a fear of being exposed as a fraud. It has been recognized as a significant challenge across various fields, including emergency medicine (EM), as IP has been linked to burnout, career stagnation, and adverse impacts on mental health. It is therefore vital that faculty development efforts target recognition of IP and mitigation of its negative effects on learners. However, given the vastly growing body of literature on IP, it may be difficult for educators to identify the most relevant resources to guide these efforts. Using a modified Delphi process, we curated a collection of literature to guide EM educators seeking to better understand and address IP. These included a qualitative study on physicians' self-assessment, a scoping review of IP literature, and studies examining structural contributors to and protective interventions against IP.
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Ginsburg et al. (2025) studied this question.
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