Is the Issue Impostor Phenomenon or Impostorization?

Akin to misdiagnosing someone with a condition and prescribing medication that does nothing to alleviate its symptoms, impostor syndrome may be a misdiagnosis and the oft-promoted strategies may prove ineffective. Instead, the real issue may be what I termed impostorization (Gutierrez, A. S. [2021, September 12]. It’s not impostor syndromeimpostor syndrome but the impostorization of employeesemployees that leads to job dissatisfaction and turnover. Diversity, Inc. (Best Practices).) (Gutiérrez, 2021). Impostorization refers to the policies, practices, and seemingly innocuous interactions in the workplace that make (or intend to make) employees question their intelligence, competence, and sense of belonging in the positions they occupy. In this chapter, I would seek to draw attention to the interpersonal and institutional triggers of impostor syndrome, organizational implications, and offer organization-level interventions to avoid impostorization.