The Role of the Impostor Phenomenon: Addressing Ethnic Minority Students’ Achievement and Mental Health

Many of us may be familiar with the issues faced by numerous first-generation college students and students of color that contribute to a lack a sense of belonging in college. Perhaps less well-known is what Dr. Kevin Cokley, of the University of Texas-Austin, calls the imposter phenomenon. Dr. Cokley has dug deep into imposter phenomenon and its relationship to the mental health and academic outcomes of ethnic minority students.

In this session, Dr. Cokely will talk about ways the college attainment field can respond to imposter phenomenon to create better outcomes for students.

Dr. Kevin Cokley is a professor of African and African Diaspora Studies and Educational Psychology at the UT-Austin. Dr. Cokley’s research has largely and broadly focused on the psychosocial experiences of African American students and other BIPOC students’ ethnic identity development, academic motivation, and academic achievement.