A survey from Moneypenny has revealed that 32 percent of Americans suffer from Impostor Syndrome at work.
The survey also revealed that when it comes to overall confidence at work, women (14 percent) tend to suffer from a lack of confidence more frequently than men (11 percent). Florida workers suffer the most from a lack of confidence, with 31 percent admitting that they don’t feel fully confident at work.
Almost one-third of Americans (32 percent) admit to suffering from Impostor Syndrome (IS) at work, according to a survey by Moneypenny, with young people being more affected by this feeling compared to all other age groups:
| Age | 18 – 24 | 25 – 34 | 35 – 44 | 45 – 54 | 55 – 64 | 65+ |
| % that have suffered from IS | 46% | 40% | 31% | 18% | 19% | 8% |
Impostor Syndrome, which is defined as “an exaggerated sense of doubt about achievements and deservedness of a job role or position” is something that a lot of us experience in the workplace.
The survey also revealed that women tend to suffer more than men when it comes to overall confidence at the workplace, with 14 percent of women stating that they don’t feel confident at work, compared to 11 percent of men. In terms of Impostor Syndrome, women (35 percent) suffered more than men (30 percent) from the sense of self-doubt.
Breaking down the data by state, those living in Florida appeared to be the least confident, with 31 percent admitting that they don’t feel completely confident within their jobs.
| State | Percentage admitting to not feeling fully confident at work |
| Florida – FL | 31% |
| Illinois – IL | 27.% |
| California – CA | 25% |
| Idaho – ID | 25% |
| Nebraska – NE | 25% |
| Delaware – DE | 24% |
| Iowa – IA | 23% |
| Pennsylvania – PA | 20% |
| Louisiana – LA | 20% |
| Nevada – NV | 19% |
The research also took a deep dive into the industries where people admitted to suffering from imposter syndrome the most, with the below fields coming out highest:
| Charity & Volunteer work | 70% |
| Law | 66% |
| Science and pharmaceuticals | 57% |
| Creative arts and design | 53% |
| Environment and agriculture | 50% |
Commenting on the research, Eric Schurke, CEO North America, Moneypenny said: “We wanted to conduct this research to get an insight into how confident workers in the US are feeling at the moment.
“Given the changing working world and the introduction of more flexible working options, it’s interesting to see that 30 percent of people are suffering from imposter syndrome, which could be a result of the pandemic as people aren’t seeing colleagues as much.”
Read more news from WO here.
Featured photo credit: useng, Getty Images
