Impostorism among the undergraduate students of Bangladesh: A cross-sectional study

Abstract Background Imposter Phenomenon (IP) is a highly prevalent behavioural health issue affecting individual professional performance and regular activity. The current study focused on evaluating IP prevalence and assessing the factor contributing to IP among undergraduate students of Dhaka city. This was an analytical cross-sectional survey performed among undergraduate students between August to December 2020. The Young Imposter Scale (YIS) was used to determine the dichotomous assessment for the presence or absence of IP. Results Among the recruited 1,139 students, 378 (33%) had imposter syndrome. The prevalence was relatively higher (34%) among males compared to females (32%). Around one third (31.6%) reported that they face problems in sleeping. Our analysis shows that the sleeping problem of the student (p=<0.01) and academic year (p=0.04) had a statistically significant association with IP. Students who completed two academic years were more likely to have IP (AOR:1.18; 95% CI: 1.01-1.41). There was a statistically significant difference in the experience of IP across who had a sleeping problem than those who didn’t (AOR: 1.54; 95% CI: 1.25-1.90). Conclusion Our study revealed a relatively high prevalence of IP among undergraduate students, affecting their professional lives. Awareness-raising programmes should be arranged at the university level to help students to cope up with IP.