I understand the objection of previous commenters that the post’s idea seems a bit backwards because people with impostor syndrome themselves think that they have *too little* skill for their position, not too much.
But I think these objections take the self-made narrative of those experiencing impostor syndrome too serious. Our instincts for navigating power hierarchies arguably are much, much older than our ability to spin elaborate self-concepts. I imagine a causal relationship like this:
skill/dominance-mismatch → fear (flight impulse) → elaborate explanation for the felt fear
We are just super bad at explaining our basal feelings. Those explanations are usually overfitting.
Great idea and nicely put, thanks!
I understand the objection of previous commenters that the post’s idea seems a bit backwards because people with impostor syndrome themselves think that they have *too little* skill for their position, not too much.
But I think these objections take the self-made narrative of those experiencing impostor syndrome too serious. Our instincts for navigating power hierarchies arguably are much, much older than our ability to spin elaborate self-concepts. I imagine a causal relationship like this:
skill/dominance-mismatch → fear (flight impulse) → elaborate explanation for the felt fear
We are just super bad at explaining our basal feelings. Those explanations are usually overfitting.