Imposter Syndrome: Reframing Self-Doubt in Medicine

jpedsurg.org

Since it was first described in 1978, there have been over 15,000 publications in the academic and lay press on “imposter syndrome,” a form of distress commonly observed in high-achieving professionals. With the best of intentions, clinicians and researchers have approached this phenomenon with the same medical framework used to diagnose, prevent, and treat illness. In this paper, we review how the concept of the imposter syndrome evolved and argue that conceptualizing this phenomenon as a medical condition to be treated on an individual basis limits our understanding of the phenomenon and our ability to relieve the distress it causes.

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Article · May 2026 · 1 min read

In brief

This paper challenges the traditional medical framework of treating imposter syndrome as an individual pathology in high-achieving clinicians. The authors argue that reframing this phenomenon beyond individual treatment reveals systemic factors contributing to professional self-doubt and offers new approaches to addressing distress in medical professionals.

Imposter syndrome has generated 15,000+ publications since 1978, primarily framing it as an individual pathology to diagnose and treat.
Medicalizing imposter syndrome as an individual condition may limit understanding of systemic and environmental contributors to the distress.
Reframing imposter syndrome beyond individual treatment could reveal organizational and cultural factors perpetuating self-doubt in medicine.
High-achieving professionals experience imposter phenomenon frequently, but current approaches may inadequately address root causes.
Moving away from a purely medical model may better address the distress imposter syndrome causes in clinical settings.

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