An experimental study of the non-self-serving attributional bias within the impostor phenomenon and its relation to the fixed mindset

Abstract

The Impostor Phenomenon describes people characterized by a non-self-serving attributional bias towards success. In this experimental between-subjects design, we conducted a bogus intelligence test in which each subject was assigned to a positive or negative feedback condition. Our sample consisted of N = 170 individuals (51% female). The results showed that the impostor expression moderates the influence of feedback on locus of causality and stability attribution. ‘Impostors’ show an external-instable attributional style regarding success and an internal-stable attributional style regarding failure. Therefore, the relationship between the impostor expression and its characteristic attribution patterns could be experimentally validated for the first time. In addition, we investigated whether the IP is linked to the performance-related construct mindset. We found a positive correlation between the IP and fixed mindset. Possible causes for these findings are discussed.