“Fighting an Uphill Battle”: A Deep Dive Into War Metaphors Describing Impostor Phenomenon

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 8:00 am Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: Language and Identity Formation in Postsecondary Contexts (Table 3)

Abstract

Impostor phenomenon occurs when successful people disbelieve their success, attributing it to luck or other external factors unrelated to their ability or competence. Using conceptual metaphor theory, this US-based study conducted a secondary analysis of 410 semi-structured interviews (62 male) with PhD students, postdoctorates, faculty members, and scientists outside academia, experiencing impostor phenomenon. Qualitative text of 2.2 million words were generated and analyzed using hybrid (inductive/deductive) coding. Forty-plus war metaphors were the most widely used by 320 (44 male) interviewees (e.g., trigger, fight, conflict, battle, shoot, defend, combat, authority, target, and attack). Metaphorical representations of impostor phenomenon are unexplored but useful in designing future interventions to help people manage it better through training in conscious language framing.

Author

• Devasmita Chakraverty, Indian Institute of Management