Investigating the Association Between Resilience and the Impostor Syndrome in Undergraduate Nursing and Medical Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Abstract Background: The prevalence of impostor syndrome has been recognized among undergraduate nursing and medical students. Resilience, on the other hand, refers to an individual's ability to adapt and bounce back from adversity. Understanding the relationship between these two constructs is important in promoting student well-being and academic success. Methods: Thiscross-sectional study aimed to investigate the relationship between resilience and impostor syndrome among undergraduate nursing and medical students. A convenience sample of 300 students from King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences participated in the study. Participants completed self-report questionnaires to assess their levels of resilience and impostor syndrome. The results revealed that less than half of the participants experienced impostor syndrome, with 41.7% classified as severe, 37.7% as moderate, and 13.0% as intense among nursing students. For medical students, 4.6% were classified as mild, 4.6% as moderate, 4.5% as severe, and 4.5% as intense. The mean resilience score was 24.3±7.15 among nursing students and 25.6±7.22 among medical students. A significant negative correlation was found between resilience and impostor syndrome scores (r = -0.220, p < .001). Regression analysis indicated that resilience was a significant predictor of impostor syndrome, with higher resilience associated with lower levels of impostor syndrome. Specifically, the odds of experiencing severe impostor phenomenon were significantly higher in the 1st quartile (odds ratio = 13.16, p = 0.023) and the 2nd quartile (odds ratio = 56.00, p = 0.008) compared to the reference category. Conclusion and Recommendations: These findings highlight the importance of resilience in mitigating impostor syndrome among nursing and medical students. Building resilience through interventions may be beneficial in promoting student well-being and academic success. Future research should explore the effectiveness of such interventions and identify other factors contributing to impostor syndrome among healthcare students.