Lost In Transition: Exploring The Link Between Moving Across Tight and Loose Cultures and Impostor Feelings

Authors:

Abstract: In light of the established role major transitions play in triggering impostor feelings (Bednar et al., 2019; Laursen, 2008), the present study seeks to draw from interdisciplinary theories of culture, language, and identity to investigate transitions across wide cultural distances as an contextual antecedent to feelings of impostorism. We predict wider cultural distance to positively influence impostor feelings through cultural adaptability. Cultural distance is constituted both by differences in perceived levels of cultural tightness (Gelfand, 2011) between home culture and host culture and by traditional measures of cultural distance (Demes and Geeraert, 2014). Additionally, we expect second language proficiency to moderate the effect of cultural distance on cultural adaptability. The present study seeks to provide novel insights into cognitive implications of transitions across tight and loose cultures and illuminate important environmental factors in experiencing impostor thoughts across borders.

Track: CULTGEN

Keywords: cultural adaptability, culture, tightness/looseness, language, impostor syndrome, impostorism, impostor thoughts, cultural distance, identity conflict