How and Why Common is Impostor Syndrome Among Medical Students and Residents?

Are you a medical student or resident? If yes, chances are, you have impostor syndrome. In this video, Flamingo will present what the impostor syndrome is, how common it is, why it is common among medical students and residents.

All information that I will present is from a recent systematic review of the articles on the syndrome that is associated with increased rates of burnout and suicide.

Here is the video: https://youtu.be/KXm6GsbHKPg

Impostor syndrome refers to “an inability to internalise success and the tendency to attribute success to external causes such as luck, error or knowing the appropriate individuals”. This inability to accept personal or professional success often leads to a sense of fraudulence.

This syndrome is very common among highly successful individuals. It’s common such that “up to 70% of people have reported a sense of impostorism at some point during their careers”. Those who have Impostor Syndrome are more susceptible to depression. They are more likely to report feelings such as low self-esteem, humiliation, guilt, anxiety, and dissatisfaction. Perfectionism is also associated with the syndrome. The most worrying fact is its association with burnout and suicide.

If you consider the perfectionist structure of the medicine field, in which just one tiny error could cost a life, the medical students and residents should be definitely prone to have impostor syndrome. Yes, that’s unfortunately true!

The systematic review that examined the articles on impostor syndrome of medical students and residents from all around the world found that the rates are ranging from 20% to 60% among medical students, and from 33% and 44% among residents. The rates are high as we anticipated.

Furthermore, the studies show that medical students and residents with low self-esteem reported higher levels of the syndrome. Perfectionism was also associated with increased risk for it.

“The literature also suggests that the hierarchy in medical education and the overall culture of medicine may perpetuate feelings of IS, as asking for help and not knowing the answer can be interpreted as signs of weakness in these environments.”

There are some strategies provided to protect the students and resident against this syndrome such as social support, validation of success, normalizing the feelings, system-level changes, fostering the culture that does not punish mistakes.

Although there are studies on the subject, there is a significant need to better understand how this syndrome has evolved within the medical field. Along with that, as the authors stated, “there is a need to determine which interventions are effective in lowering symptoms of impostorism or converting IS into a tool for success”.

You can find the link of the review that I presented in the video at the description section: https://youtu.be/KXm6GsbHKPg

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See you and adios para amigos.

And also, don’t forget the Flamingo.