The Impostor Phenomenon in the Nutrition and Dietetics Profession: An Online Cross-Sectional Survey
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Survey Development and Design
2.2. Survey Administration
2.3. Demographics
2.4. The Impostor Phenomenon
2.5. Job Satisfaction
2.6. Burnout and Well-Being
2.7. Social Media Questions
2.8. Data Management and Statistical Analysis
3. Results
3.1. The Prevalence of IP
3.2. Demographic Predictors of the Impostor Phenomenon
3.3. Well-Being
3.4. Job Satisfaction
3.5. Social Media Use
4. Discussion
Strengths and Limitations
5. Conclusions
Supplementary Materials
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Characteristics | n (%) |
---|---|
Age (years) | |
18–24 | 195 (19.2) |
25–34 | 440 (43.3) |
35–44 | 194 (19.1) |
45–54 | 97 (9.6) |
55–64 | 64 (6.3) |
65–74 | 24 (2.4) |
75+ | 1 (0.1) |
Gender | |
Male | 34 (3.3) |
Female | 972 (95.8) |
Non-binary/Non-conforming/Expansive | 5 (0.5) |
Prefer not to say | 4 (0.4) |
Ethnicity | |
Hispanic/Latino | 87 (8.6) |
Non-Hispanic/Latino | 928 (91.4) |
Race | |
American Indian or Alaska Native | 8 (0.8) |
Asian | 48 (4.7) |
Black or African American | 39 (3.8) |
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander | 2 (0.2) |
White or Caucasian | 853 (84.0) |
Bi/Multiracial | 65 (6.4) |
Sexual Orientation | |
Heterosexual or straight | 905 (89.1) |
Gay or lesbian | 17 (1.7) |
Bisexual | 68 (6.7) |
Different identity | 12 (1.2) |
Prefer not to say | 13 (1.3) |
Educational Attainment | |
Some College | 32 (3.2) |
Associates | 27 (2.7) |
Bachelors | 453 (44.6) |
Masters | 442 (43.5) |
Doctorate | 61 (6.0) |
Professional Level | |
Student (Undergraduate or Graduate) | 170 (16.7) |
Dietetic Intern | 151 (14.9) |
Practicing NDTR | 18 (1.8) |
Practicing RDN | 658 (64.8) |
Retired NDTR or RDN | 18 (1.8) |
Chronic Disability Condition a | 9 (0.9) |
Disability Substantially Limiting Basic Physical Activities b | 26 (2.6) |
Member of an Academy Dietetic Practice Group | 105 (10.3) |
Member of an Academy Member Interest Group | 105 (10.3) |
Impostor Phenomenon Experiences b | Student (n = 170) | Dietetic Intern (n = 151) | NDTR (n = 18) | RDN (n = 658) | Retired NDTR/RDN (n = 18) | Total (n = 1015) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Few | 7 (4.1%) | 7 (4.6%) | 0 (0.0%) | 58 (8.8%) | 6 (33.3%) | 78 (7.7%) |
Moderate | 31 (18.2%) | 36 (23.8%) | 4 (22.2%) | 206 (31.3%) | 5 (27.8%) | 282 (27.8%) |
Frequent | 80 (47.1%) | 69 (45.7%) | 11 (61.1%) | 276 (41.9%) | 4 (22.2%) | 440 (43.3%) |
Intense | 52 (30.6%) | 39 (25.8%) | 3 (16.7%) | 118 (17.9%) | 3 (16.7%) | 215 (21.2%) |
Beta | Std. Error | p-Value | |
---|---|---|---|
Age (years) | <0.001 | ||
18–24 | Referent | ---- | --- |
25–34 | −1.64 | 1.32 | 0.214 |
35–44 | −3.16 | 1.56 | 0.043 |
45–54 | −11.19 | 1.91 | <0.001 |
55–64 | −18.59 | 2.21 | <0.001 |
65–74 | −19.56 | 3.33 | <0.001 |
75+ | −27.06 | 15.41 | 0.079 |
Gender | 0.780 | ||
Female | Referent | ---- | --- |
Male | −2.91 | 2.84 | 0.307 |
Non-binary/Non-conforming/Expansive | −1.51 | 7.31 | 0.836 |
Prefer not to say | 0.39 | 8.16 | 0.962 |
Ethnicity | 0.051 | ||
Non-Hispanic/Latino | Referent | ---- | --- |
Hispanic/Latino | 3.56 | 1.83 | 0.051 |
Race | 0.145 | ||
White or Caucasian | Referent | ---- | --- |
American Indian or Alaska Native | −9.76 | 5.77 | 0.091 |
Asian | 3.18 | 2.41 | 0.186 |
Black or African American | −3.47 | 2.66 | 0.193 |
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander | −15.13 | 11.50 | 0.189 |
Bi/Multiracial | −0.52 | 2.09 | 0.805 |
Sexual Orientation | 0.073 | ||
Heterosexual or straight | Referent | ---- | --- |
Gay or lesbian | 6.66 | 4.10 | 0.104 |
Bisexual | 3.98 | 2.04 | 0.052 |
Different identity | 5.26 | 4.71 | 0.265 |
Prefer not to say | −4.73 | 4.54 | 0.297 |
Educational Attainment | <0.001 | ||
Bachelors | Referent | ---- | --- |
Some College | 5.55 | 2.93 | 0.059 |
Associates | 1.54 | 3.17 | 0.628 |
Masters | −1.98 | 1.07 | 0.065 |
Doctorate | −12.23 | 2.18 | <0.001 |
Professional Level | <0.001 | ||
Practicing RDN | Referent | ---- | --- |
Student (Undergraduate or Graduate) | 6.53 | 1.38 | <0.001 |
Dietetic Intern | 4.47 | 1.45 | 0.002 |
Practicing NDTR | 2.84 | 3.82 | 0.457 |
Retired NDTR or RDN | −9.82 | 3.83 | 0.010 |
Academy Dietetic Practice Group Membership | <0.001 | ||
Yes | Referent | ---- | --- |
No | 3.99 | 1.01 | <0.001 |
Academy Member Interest Group Membership | 0.028 | ||
Yes | Referent | ---- | --- |
No | 3.68 | 1.68 | 0.028 |
Social Media Use | <0.001 | ||
Yes | Referent | ---- | --- |
No | −5.10 | 1.57 | <0.001 |
Social Media Use per Day (n = 894) b | <0.001 | ||
<30 min | Referent | ---- | --- |
30–60 min | 5.27 | 1.90 | 0.006 |
1–3 h | 6.92 | 1.80 | <0.001 |
>3 h | 10.19 | 2.17 | <0.001 |
Question | % of Sample |
---|---|
Do you currently use or are you active on social media platform(s)? (n = 1015) | |
Yes | 88.1% |
No | 11.9% |
How many social media sites do you have accounts with? | |
1 | 3.8% |
2–3 | 45.6% |
4–5 | 33.8% |
6 or more | 16.8% |
How much time do you collectively spend on social media per day? | |
<30 min | 10.3% |
30–60 min | 28.6% |
1–3 h | 47.7% |
>3 h | 13.4% |
Which social media channel are you most active on? | |
37.6% | |
2.6% | |
45.4% | |
2.5% | |
0.7% | |
YouTube | 5.4% |
TikTok | 5.8% |
Do you use social media to promote yourself as a dietitian or dietetics student? | |
Yes | 30.9% |
No | 69.1% |
Do you compare yourself to other dietitians or students on social media? | |
Always | 15.8% |
Most of the time | 12.1% |
About half the time | 11.2% |
Sometimes | 41.8% |
Never | 19.1% |
Do you feel intellectual phoniness or a persistent feeling of being a fraud compared to other dietitians, nutrition professionals, or influencers on social media? | |
Always | 13.7% |
Most of the time | 16.5% |
About half the time | 14.2% |
Sometimes | 29.0% |
Never | 26.6% |
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Landry, M.J.; Bailey, D.A.; Lee, M.; Van Gundy, S.; Ervin, A. The Impostor Phenomenon in the Nutrition and Dietetics Profession: An Online Cross-Sectional Survey. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19, 5558. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19095558
Landry MJ, Bailey DA, Lee M, Van Gundy S, Ervin A. The Impostor Phenomenon in the Nutrition and Dietetics Profession: An Online Cross-Sectional Survey. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022; 19(9):5558. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19095558
Chicago/Turabian StyleLandry, Matthew J., Dylan A. Bailey, MinJi Lee, Samuel Van Gundy, and Audrey Ervin. 2022. "The Impostor Phenomenon in the Nutrition and Dietetics Profession: An Online Cross-Sectional Survey" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19, no. 9: 5558. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19095558