Matters arising from Salari et al. (2025): Why it is (currently) impossible to estimate accurate prevalence rates of the Impostor Phenomenon

The Impostor Phenomenon (IP) describes self-perceptions of intellectual fraudulence despite external and/or objective feedback supporting one's intellectual abilities [1]. Salari and colleagues [2] provided a meta-analysis of the IP among health service providers, aggregating data from 30 studies and 11,483 participants. One of their major aims was reporting the prevalence (i.e., the proportion of a population affected by a condition) of the IP. Therefore, they analyzed studies reporting prevalence rates. While we applaud the aspiration of Salari and colleagues in their work, we discuss why it is currently not suitable to interpret prevalence rates of the IP from a conceptual and methodological perspective.

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Publication Details

Journal
BMC Psychology
Published
2026-06-30
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-026-04987-4
Primary Topic
Perfectionism, Procrastination, Anxiety Studies
Type
article
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article

Matters arising from Salari et al. (2025): Why it is (currently) impossible to estimate accurate prevalence rates of the Impostor Phenomenon

Kay Brauer, René T. Proyer
BMC Psychology
Perfectionism, Procrastination, Anxiety Studies
article

Matters arising from Salari et al. (2025): Why it is (currently) impossible to estimate accurate prevalence rates of the Impostor Phenomenon

Kay Brauer, René T. Proyer
article en

Abstract

The Impostor Phenomenon (IP) describes self-perceptions of intellectual fraudulence despite external and/or objective feedback supporting one's intellectual abilities [1]. Salari and colleagues [2] provided a meta-analysis of the IP among health service providers, aggregating data from 30 studies and 11,483 participants. One of their major aims was reporting the prevalence (i.e., the proportion of a population affected by a condition) of the IP. Therefore, they analyzed studies reporting prevalence rates. While we applaud the aspiration of Salari and colleagues in their work, we discuss why it is currently not suitable to interpret prevalence rates of the IP from a conceptual and methodological perspective.

BMC PsychologyVol. 14(1)
Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (DE)
Openalex Percentile: Top 7%
Perfectionism, Procrastination, Anxiety Studies
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