Imposter Phenomenon in First-Generation College Students
Open Access
Author:
Gillespie, Sarah
Area of Honors:
Letters, Arts, and Sciences (Abington)
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Dr. Frances M. Sessa, Thesis Supervisor Dr. David E Ruth, Thesis Honors Advisor
Keywords:
Imposter Phenomenon First-Generation College Imposter White Non-White Clance Imposter Scale
Abstract:
In 1978, the term Imposter Phenomenon (IP) was defined and studied by Clance and Imes. They studied why women tend to experience the imposter phenomenon more than men. Imposter phenomenon refers to a feeling of phoniness experienced at an internal level by competent people (Clance, 1985). College students have been a secondary source of research populations in more modern years. Previous research has shown some characteristics of imposter phenomenon and illustrated comparisons between genders and ethnicities, but has not shown the percentages of college students who have the phenomenon. The study examined the imposter phenomenon among first-generation college students to better understand the rate of attrition among first-generation students that is an increasing problem (Martinez, 2009). Results show that there is no overall difference between first-generation and non-first-generation students. However, there was a significant difference between white first-generation and white non-first-generation students; white first-generation students displayed much higher levels of imposterism than white non-first-generation students.
