Impostor PhenomenonNCT05230030
IMPROV-ing The Impostor Phenomenon
A study testing Improvisation Workshop in people with Impostor Phenomenon, run by University Health Network, Toronto at 1 site in Canada.
Trial summary
The impostor phenomenon refers to feelings of self-doubt and fraudulence in one's own abilities, despite the presence of external evidence to suggest otherwise. Symptoms of the impostor phenomenon can impede achievement of career-related goals in medical trainees and impact resilience, stress levels, and burnout. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Any ageHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Impostor Phenomenon
- What is being tested?
- Improvisation Workshop
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 200 participants
- Where
- 1 siteCanada
- Study dates
- 17 Jan 2022to 31 Jan 2024
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages Any age
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Have official registration with the University of Toronto Undergraduate or Postgraduate Medical Education offices
Who cannot join
- Non-fulltime student status
- Exclusion criteria will include participating in the "Improv(ing) the Impostor Phenomenon" study as a co-investigator or concurrent participation in a structured unrelated improvisation program, workshop series, or class outside of the study (ex. The Second City Training Programs/Classes)
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
About this study
The impostor phenomenon refers to feelings of self-doubt and fraudulence in one's own abilities, despite the presence of external evidence to suggest otherwise. Symptoms of the impostor phenomenon can impede achievement of career-related goals in medical trainees and impact resilience, stress levels, and burnout. If these symptoms go unnoticed, they could progress to a severity that threatens sustained wellness among medical trainees. Our research questions are: 1) Is the time of the academic year (e.g., beginning, middle, end) associated with severity in impostor phenomenon as measured by the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS) in medical trainees at the University of Toronto? 2) Is participation in improvisation workshops over the course of an academic year a feasible intervention to mitigate symptoms of impostor phenomenon in medical trainees at the University of Toronto? Combined, our two-part study will explore peak risk periods of impostor phenomenon and whether improvisation workshops are a feasible intervention to address this.
Read the detailed description
Part 1 of the study:
This will be a prospective cohort study investigating the longitudinal prevalence and levels of impostor phenomenon among medical trainees over the course of one calendar year. Outcomes of interest will be measured in each participant every 3 months with rolling recruitment into the study until the end of the study. Recruitment will last for 2 years. Study investigators will offer and administer an electronic survey to measure impostor phenomenon and symptoms using validated scales. The surveys will be administered to all consenting medical trainees participating in University of Toronto-affiliated hospital rotations on the first day of the rotation. Participant recruitment will occur at University of Toronto-affiliated medical school and hospitals.
Part 2 of the study:
Among participants invited for research question 1 of our study, 10-20 participants will be recruited to further explore the feasibility of an improvisation curriculum during medical training. If volunteer numbers exceed 20, participants will be randomly chosen from the group of interested participants. This curriculum will be a uniquely designed series of flexibly-timed improvisation workshops administered during the study period. Based on within-study participant feedback, sessions will be organized to develop optimal timing and duration of improvisation sessions. Previous studies on improvisation in medical education have varied in terms of timing, frequency, and exercises. Accordingly, each improvisation workshop will involve a series of exercises derived from an improvisation game book previously developed by study investigators, followed by a reflective debrief of the experience. Although improvisation workshops can vary as described, a recently published scoping review revealed three consistent structural elements that will serve as a framework for the improvisation intervention in this study: orientation and setup, culture of safety, and debriefing. Pre-session readings will orient participants to key principles and skills in improvisation. During the exercises, facilitators foster a culture of safety by normalizing uncertainty, creating a low-stakes environment, and providing freedom for time-outs. Improvisation exercises will be followed by debrief to reflect on the session, exchange feedback, and draw connections between improvisation and the impostor phenomenon.
The workshops for this study are designed based on the recommendations established by previous studies with improvisation in medical education. Using published guidelines, workshops will have groups of approximately 10 study participants and last on average 2 hours under the instruction of an expert medical improvisation facilitator. Improvisation sessions will be initially planned to be delivered once per month for 2 hours for four consecutive months with built-in flexibility with respect to session duration and frequency based on participant feedback. Additional sessions can be subsequently offered biweekly and/or for longer than 4 months (up to 10 months) as needed.
- Conditions
- Impostor Phenomenon
- Being tested
- Improvisation Workshop
- Keywords
- Medical trainee, Wellness, Resilience, Burnout, Stress, Physician wellness, Medical education, Observational cohort
- Medical subject headings
- imposter syndrome, Burnout, Psychological
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Improvisation WorkshopBehavioural
Each improvisation workshop will involve a series of exercises derived from an improvisation game book previously developed by study investigators, followed by a reflective debrief of the experience.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Observational | No intervention | Not described |
| Improvisation Workshops | Experimental | Participants will take part in an improvisation curriculum containing a uniquely designed series of flexibly-timed improvisation workshops administered during the study period. Using published guidelines, workshops will have groups of approximately 10 study participants and last on average 2 hours under the instruction of an expert medical improvisation facilitator. Receives: Behavioral: Improvisation Workshop |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Impostor phenomenon score
Score measured by the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale; scores can range from 20-100, with higher scores indicating more intense symptoms of impostor phenomenon
Measured: 3 months
Secondary outcomes (3)
Resilience score
Score measured by the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale; scores can range from 0-100, with higher scores meaning higher resilience
Measured: 3 months
Perceived stress score
Score measured by the Perceived Stress Scale; scores can range from 0-40, with higher scores meaning higher perceived stress
Measured: 3 months
Burnout
Measured by the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Human Services Survey -2 for Medical Personnel with no quantitative score
Measured: 3 months
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted8 Feb 2022
- Study start17 Jan 2022
- Primary completion31 Jan 2024
- Study completion31 Jan 2024
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (9)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Impostor PhenomenonStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by University Health Network, TorontoThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Other
- Allocation
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Sequential
- Model description
- Two-part study, starting with observational cohort measuring baseline parameters longitudinally. The second part of the study includes intervention in a single-arm among participants who completed baseline parameters.
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 200 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University Health Network, Toronto
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- University of Toronto
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
- Investigators
- Esther Bui, MD, Principal investigator, University Health Network, Toronto
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05230030
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 30194
- Status last verified
- Jun 2023
- First submitted
- 27 Jan 2022
- Last updated
- 5 Jun 2024
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Publications
Mullangi S, Jagsi R. Imposter Syndrome: Treat the Cause, Not the Symptom. JAMA. 2019 Aug 6;322(5):403-404. doi: 10.1001/jama.2019.9788. No abstract available.
PubMed 31386138LaDonna KA, Ginsburg S, Watling C. "Rising to the Level of Your Incompetence": What Physicians' Self-Assessment of Their Performance Reveals About the Imposter Syndrome in Medicine. Acad Med. 2018 May;93(5):763-768. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000002046.
PubMed 29116983Gottlieb M. More than meets the eye: The impact of imposter syndrome on feedback receptivity. Med Educ. 2021 Feb;55(2):144-145. doi: 10.1111/medu.14412. Epub 2020 Nov 18. No abstract available.
PubMed 33155297Gottlieb M, Chung A, Battaglioli N, Sebok-Syer SS, Kalantari A. Impostor syndrome among physicians and physicians in training: A scoping review. Med Educ. 2020 Feb;54(2):116-124. doi: 10.1111/medu.13956. Epub 2019 Nov 6.
PubMed 31692028Clance PR, Imes SA. The imposter phenomenon in high achieving women: Dynamics and therapeutic intervention. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research & Practice. 1978;15(3):241. doi:10.1037/h0086006
Clance P. The Impostor Phenomenon: Overcoming The Fear That Haunts Your Success. Atlanta, Ga.: Peachtree Publishers; 1985.
Connor KM, Davidson JR. Development of a new resilience scale: the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC). Depress Anxiety. 2003;18(2):76-82. doi: 10.1002/da.10113.
PubMed 12964174Maslach C, Jackson S, Leiter M. Maslach Burnout Inven- tory Manual. 3rd ed. Palo Alto: Consulting Psychologists Press; 1996.
Cohen S, Kamarck T, Mermelstein R. A global measure of perceived stress. J Health Soc Behav. 1983 Dec;24(4):385-96. No abstract available.
PubMed 6668417
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 5 Jun 2024. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- IMPROV-ing The Impostor Phenomenon
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05230030
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- 30194
- Conditions
- Impostor Phenomenon
- Keywords
- Medical trainee, Wellness, Resilience, Burnout, Stress, Physician wellness, Medical education, Observational cohort
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 200 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- University Health Network, TorontoUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- University of Toronto
- Study start
- 17 Jan 2022 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 31 Jan 2024 (actual)
- Study completion
- 31 Jan 2024 (actual)
- First posted
- 8 Feb 2022 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The impostor phenomenon refers to feelings of self-doubt and fraudulence in one's own abilities, despite the presence of external evidence to suggest otherwise. Symptoms of the impostor phenomenon can impede achievement of career-related goals in medical trainees and impact resilience, stress levels, and burnout. If these symptoms go unnoticed, they could progress to a severity that threatens sustained wellness among medical trainees. Our research questions are: 1) Is the time of the academic year (e.g., beginning, middle, end) associated with severity in impostor phenomenon as measured by the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS) in medical trainees at the University of Toronto? 2) Is participation in improvisation workshops over the course of an academic year a feasible intervention to mitigate symptoms of impostor phenomenon in medical trainees at the University of Toronto? Combined, our two-part study will explore peak risk periods of impostor phenomenon and whether improvisation workshops are a feasible intervention to address this.
Detailed description
Part 1 of the study:
This will be a prospective cohort study investigating the longitudinal prevalence and levels of impostor phenomenon among medical trainees over the course of one calendar year. Outcomes of interest will be measured in each participant every 3 months with rolling recruitment into the study until the end of the study. Recruitment will last for 2 years. Study investigators will offer and administer an electronic survey to measure impostor phenomenon and symptoms using validated scales. The surveys will be administered to all consenting medical trainees participating in University of Toronto-affiliated hospital rotations on the first day of the rotation. Participant recruitment will occur at University of Toronto-affiliated medical school and hospitals.
Part 2 of the study:
Among participants invited for research question 1 of our study, 10-20 participants will be recruited to further explore the feasibility of an improvisation curriculum during medical training. If volunteer numbers exceed 20, participants will be randomly chosen from the group of interested participants. This curriculum will be a uniquely designed series of flexibly-timed improvisation workshops administered during the study period. Based on within-study participant feedback, sessions will be organized to develop optimal timing and duration of improvisation sessions. Previous studies on improvisation in medical education have varied in terms of timing, frequency, and exercises. Accordingly, each improvisation workshop will involve a series of exercises derived from an improvisation game book previously developed by study investigators, followed by a reflective debrief of the experience. Although improvisation workshops can vary as described, a recently published scoping review revealed three consistent structural elements that will serve as a framework for the improvisation intervention in this study: orientation and setup, culture of safety, and debriefing. Pre-session readings will orient participants to key principles and skills in improvisation. During the exercises, facilitators foster a culture of safety by normalizing uncertainty, creating a low-stakes environment, and providing freedom for time-outs. Improvisation exercises will be followed by debrief to reflect on the session, exchange feedback, and draw connections between improvisation and the impostor phenomenon.
The workshops for this study are designed based on the recommendations established by previous studies with improvisation in medical education. Using published guidelines, workshops will have groups of approximately 10 study participants and last on average 2 hours under the instruction of an expert medical improvisation facilitator. Improvisation sessions will be initially planned to be delivered once per month for 2 hours for four consecutive months with built-in flexibility with respect to session duration and frequency based on participant feedback. Additional sessions can be subsequently offered biweekly and/or for longer than 4 months (up to 10 months) as needed.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Other
- Allocation
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Sequential
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 2
- Model description
- Two-part study, starting with observational cohort measuring baseline parameters longitudinally. The second part of the study includes intervention in a single-arm among participants who completed baseline parameters.
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Observational | No intervention | – |
| Improvisation Workshops | Experimental | Behavioral: Improvisation WorkshopParticipants will take part in an improvisation curriculum containing a uniquely designed series of flexibly-timed improvisation workshops administered during the study period. Using published guidelines, workshops will have groups of approximately 10 study participants and last on average 2 hours under the instruction of an expert medical improvisation facilitator. |
Who may qualify
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (1 listed)
- Have official registration with the University of Toronto Undergraduate or Postgraduate Medical Education offices
Key exclusion criteria (2 listed)
- Non-fulltime student status
- Exclusion criteria will include participating in the "Improv(ing) the Impostor Phenomenon" study as a co-investigator or concurrent participation in a structured unrelated improvisation program, workshop series, or class outside of the study (ex. The Second City Training Programs/Classes)
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Improvisation WorkshopEach improvisation workshop will involve a series of exercises derived from an improvisation game book previously developed by study investigators, followed by a reflective debrief of the experience. | Behavioural | Improvisation Workshops |
Primary outcome
Impostor phenomenon score
Time frame: 3 months
Score measured by the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale; scores can range from 20-100, with higher scores indicating more intense symptoms of impostor phenomenon
3 secondary outcomes
Resilience score
Time frame: 3 months
Perceived stress score
Time frame: 3 months
Burnout
Time frame: 3 months
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 5 Jun 2024.
- Background: PubMed 31386138Mullangi S, Jagsi R. Imposter Syndrome: Treat the Cause, Not the Symptom. JAMA. 2019 Aug 6;322(5):403-404. doi: 10.1001/jama.2019.9788. No abstract available.
- Background: PubMed 29116983LaDonna KA, Ginsburg S, Watling C. "Rising to the Level of Your Incompetence": What Physicians' Self-Assessment of Their Performance Reveals About the Imposter Syndrome in Medicine. Acad Med. 2018 May;93(5):763-768. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000002046.
- Background: PubMed 33155297Gottlieb M. More than meets the eye: The impact of imposter syndrome on feedback receptivity. Med Educ. 2021 Feb;55(2):144-145. doi: 10.1111/medu.14412. Epub 2020 Nov 18. No abstract available.
- Background: PubMed 31692028Gottlieb M, Chung A, Battaglioli N, Sebok-Syer SS, Kalantari A. Impostor syndrome among physicians and physicians in training: A scoping review. Med Educ. 2020 Feb;54(2):116-124. doi: 10.1111/medu.13956. Epub 2019 Nov 6.
- BackgroundClance PR, Imes SA. The imposter phenomenon in high achieving women: Dynamics and therapeutic intervention. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research & Practice. 1978;15(3):241. doi:10.1037/h0086006
- BackgroundClance P. The Impostor Phenomenon: Overcoming The Fear That Haunts Your Success. Atlanta, Ga.: Peachtree Publishers; 1985.
- Background: PubMed 12964174Connor KM, Davidson JR. Development of a new resilience scale: the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC). Depress Anxiety. 2003;18(2):76-82. doi: 10.1002/da.10113.
- BackgroundMaslach C, Jackson S, Leiter M. Maslach Burnout Inven- tory Manual. 3rd ed. Palo Alto: Consulting Psychologists Press; 1996.
- Background: PubMed 6668417Cohen S, Kamarck T, Mermelstein R. A global measure of perceived stress. J Health Soc Behav. 1983 Dec;24(4):385-96. No abstract available.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Esther Bui, MD principal investigator
University Health Network, Toronto
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Improvisation Workshop in people with Impostor Phenomenon, run by University Health Network, Toronto at 1 site in Canada.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 1 inclusion and 2 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 5 Jun 2024. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in Canada. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Impostor phenomenon score (time frame: 3 months). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT05230030, which also lists 9 linked publications.
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 5 Jun 2024.