Correlates of Impostor Phenomenon Among Indonesian Sports Science Students

This cross-sectional study evaluated the psychiatric correlates of the impostor phenomenon among Indonesian sports science undergraduates, focusing specifically on the relative contributions of self-esteem and anxiety alongside related psychological, behavioral, and structural factors. A total of 438 junior-year undergraduates at a public university in Makassar, Indonesia, completed a cross-sectional survey. Self-esteem was measured using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), anxiety symptoms were assessed using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and impostor phenomenon severity was evaluated using the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS). Behavioral factors (nightly sleep duration and daily social media use) and structural factors (sex, grade point average \[GPA\], scholarship status, residential arrangement, and organizational participation) were also captured and analyzed using Spearman correlations, group comparisons, and simultaneous as well as hierarchical multiple linear regressions. NOTE: This study was retrospectively registered. The study was conducted from June 2025 to August 2025 following the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) guidelines and received ethical clearance (PROTOKOL-UH25010017) from the Institutional Biomedical Research Ethics Committee of Hasanuddin University prior to study initiation. Written informed consent was obtained from all participants. No outcome measures, study design, or statistical analysis plan were modified following data collection.

NCT Number	NCT07725302
Lead Sponsor	Hasanuddin University
Conditions	Impostor Phenomenon, Self Esteem, Anxiety
Enrollment	438 participants
Start Date	2025-06-01
Primary Completion	2025-08-31 (estimated)
Study Completion	2025-08-31 (estimated)
Updated on ClinicalTrials.gov	2026-07-27