Can we please stop using the language of #impostersyndrome to describe our psychological adaptation to the complex processes of being asked to perform as a “professional” with insufficient training and little pay, often within a context of hazing and constant critique?
I would prefer to refer to the experience as “uncertainty anxiety,” or “good pet syndrome.” Lots of teachers teach because they were praised as students. Grad students, eager approval, might feign credibility to gain favors. But many can’t fake it til they break it.
Maybe we “fix” the implication of IS, which is, “I fear you will blame me if I fail to sustain this system that has already failed me by not acknowledging what I know and expecting me to duplicate policing structures that contribute to my bondage.”
When we stop pathologizing our responses to inequality and limited support, we might actually be able to help grad students tap into their power, creativity, potential. Otherwise, the guessing game structures silence—permeating grad programs and reproducing exclusion.
