Have you ever felt like a fraud, despite your accomplishments? Like you’re just waiting for someone to expose you as a phony? Welcome to the club. You’re experiencing imposter syndrome, and you’re not alone.
But what if I told you that imposter syndrome isn’t just about feeling inadequate? What if it’s actually your brain’s way of processing a complex web of experiences and perspectives?
Let’s dive into a fresh take on this common phenomenon.
The Traditional View: Not Good Enough
We’ve all heard the standard definition: imposter syndrome is the persistent feeling that you’re not as competent as others perceive you to be. It’s that nagging voice whispering, “You don’t belong here,” even as you’re crushing it in your career or personal life.
But here’s the kicker: this definition only scratches the surface.
A New Perspective: The Echo Chamber of Past Criticism
Imagine your brain as a vast library. Each shelf is stocked with memories, experiences, and the voices of people who’ve influenced you. Now, picture imposter syndrome as the world’s most annoying librarian, constantly pulling out books of past criticism and negative experiences.
This isn’t just about feeling inadequate. It’s about your brain actively recalling and replaying specific instances where you were told you weren’t good enough, smart enough, or creative enough.
Let’s break it down:
The Voice in Your Head
It’s not just a vague feeling of doubt. It’s the actual voice of your third-grade teacher telling you your story was “too weird.” It’s your college professor suggesting you’re not cut out for your chosen field. It’s every dismissive comment, every raised eyebrow, every subtle indication that you don’t quite measure up.
The Memory Reel
Along with these voices comes a highlight reel of moments where you felt out of place or misunderstood. That time you pitched an idea in a meeting and got blank stares. The moment you realized your art style didn’t fit the popular trends. Each memory serves as “evidence” supporting the imposter narrative.
The Outlier Effect
If you’re particularly creative or gifted, this effect can be even more pronounced. Why? Because you’re more likely to have experiences where your ideas or perspectives didn’t align with the norm. Each of these instances becomes fuel for the imposter fire.
The Role of Infracognition
Now, let’s introduce a term that might be new to you: infracognition. Infracognition is the body’s mirror of metacognition. Metacognition is thinking about thinking. Infracognition is thinking about feeling. Think of it as the backstage crew of your mind, working behind the scenes to process information and shape your thoughts and feelings.
Your infracognition is like a super-efficient, but sometimes overzealous, personal assistant. It’s constantly sifting through your experiences, trying to make sense of the world and your place in it. When it comes to imposter syndrome, your infracognition is working overtime, pulling out all those negative memories and critical voices.
Your infracognition isn’t trying to sabotage you. It’s trying to protect you by keeping you alert to potential criticism or failure. The problem is, it’s operating on outdated information and faulty assumptions, such as the assumption that our emotions do not have meaning.
The Neuroscience Behind Emotional Processing
Recent research in affective neuroscience provides insight into how our brains process emotions and their critical role in shaping our thoughts and behaviors. The amygdala, for instance, is a brain region involved in the processing of emotions such as fear and anxiety. It can activate our fight-or-flight response when we perceive a threat, even if that threat is just the fear of being exposed as an imposter (Sheridan Center) (Wharton Executive Education).
Moreover, the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for higher-order thinking and decision-making, interacts with the amygdala to regulate our emotional responses. This interaction helps us evaluate whether our emotional reactions are appropriate to the current situation or based on past experiences. However, when our brain continuously recalls negative experiences and criticisms, it can strengthen the neural pathways associated with these memories, making them more salient and influential in our present thinking (Sheridan Center) (Projects at Harvard).
By understanding the neuroscience behind how our brains process and recall emotional experiences, we can better appreciate why imposter syndrome feels so pervasive and difficult to overcome. It’s not just about feeling inadequate; it’s about how our brains are wired to prioritize and emphasize past criticisms to protect us from perceived threats.
References
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Ferrari, J. R. (2005). Impostor tendencies and academic dishonesty: Do they cheat their way to success? Social Behavior and Personality: an international journal, 33(1), 11–18.
Kolligian, J., & Sternberg, R. J. (1991). Perceived fraudulence in young adults: Is there an “impostor syndrome”? Journal of Personality Assessment, 56(2), 308–326.
Mak, K. K. L., Kleitman, S., & Abbott, M. J. (2019). Impostor phenomenon measurement scales: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 671.
Maqsood, H., Shakeel, H. A., Hussain, H., Khan, A. R., Ali, B., Ishaq, A., & Shah, S. A. Y. (2018). The descriptive study of impostor syndrome in medical students. International Journal of Research in Medical Sciences, 6(10), 3431–3434.
Phelps, E. A. (2006). Emotion and cognition: Insights from studies of the human amygdala. Annual Review of Psychology, 57, 27–53.
Dolcos, F., & Denkova, E. (2008). Neural correlates of emotional memories: A review of evidence from brain imaging studies. Psychologia, 51(2), 169–189.
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