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The Impostor Phenomenon (IP) is a pervasive psychological condition characterized by self-doubt and a fear of being exposed as a fraud, despite evidence of one’s competence. This condition is particularly prevalent in high-pressure fields such as software engineering, where constant innovation and expertise are demanded. An initial survey of 624 software engineering professionals across 26 countries revealed that more than half experience frequent and intense impostor feelings, negatively impacting mental health and productivity. To address this concern, this Ph.D. thesis seeks to identify key factors driving IP’s prevalence in software engineering and develop targeted strategies for its mitigation. Using a mixed-methods approach, this research combines quantitative survey data from the prior study with in-depth qualitative interviews to provide a comprehensive understanding of IP within the software industry. Based on this understanding, the research will examine mitigation strategies from other fields, adapt them to the unique demands of software engineering, and empirically assess their effectiveness, evolving our knowledge on how software professionals can be best supported. Expected contributions include a detailed analysis of IP’s underlying factors in software engineering and the development of innovative and tailored interventions to reduce impostor feelings in software professionals. The findings are expected to have relevant implications for both industry and academia, fostering psychologically safe environments that enhance well-being and productivity and laying the groundwork for future advancements in workplace support and mental health for software professionals.

Tue 29 Apr

Displayed time zone: Eastern Time (US & Canada) change

12:00 - 12:30
Session 2: Human aspects (posters)Doctoral Symposium at 209 Poster Area
12:00
30m
Talk
Towards Fully-Traceable Human-Centred Design
Doctoral Symposium
Christopher Schankula McMaster University
12:00
30m
Talk
User perceptions of ethical issues in software
Doctoral Symposium
Tom P Humbert Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
12:00
30m
Talk
Advancing Cognitive Inclusivity in Software Engineering Tools and Practices
Doctoral Symposium
Faith Culas University of Auckland
12:00
30m
Talk
Human-centric Requirements Engineering for Digital Health Software for Aging People
Doctoral Symposium
Yuqing Xiao Monash University
12:00
30m
Talk
Improving Software Engineering Team Communication Through Stronger Social Networks
Doctoral Symposium
April Clarke University of Canterbury
12:00
30m
Talk
Decoding the Impostor Phenomenon: Unveiling Factors and Mitigation Strategies for Software Professionals
Doctoral Symposium
Paloma Guenes Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio)
12:00
30m
Talk
Customer Validation, Feedback and Collaboration in Large-Scale Continuous Software Development
Doctoral Symposium
David Molamphy University of Limerick

Wed 30 Apr

Displayed time zone: Eastern Time (US & Canada) change

17:30 - 18:00
Doctoral Symposium Poster Session (Wednesday) at Canada Hall 3 poster areaDoctoral Symposium at Canada Hall 3 Poster Area
17:30
30m
Talk
Towards Fully-Traceable Human-Centred Design
Doctoral Symposium
Christopher Schankula McMaster University
17:30
30m
Talk
Towards Quality Assurance of Natural Language in Code
Doctoral Symposium
Renyi Zhong The Chinese University of Hong Kong
17:30
30m
Talk
Improving Software Engineering Team Communication Through Stronger Social Networks
Doctoral Symposium
April Clarke University of Canterbury
17:30
30m
Talk
Augmenting the Generality and Performance of Large Language Models for Software Engineering
Doctoral Symposium
Fabian C. Peña University of Passau
17:30
30m
Talk
Customer Validation, Feedback and Collaboration in Large-Scale Continuous Software Development
Doctoral Symposium
David Molamphy University of Limerick
17:30
30m
Talk
A BizDevOps-Aligned Framework for Integrating Security Practices in Agile Software Development
Doctoral Symposium
Alejandra Selva-Mora Universidad de Costa Rica
17:30
30m
Talk
Semantic-aware Replicated Data Types for Improved Conflict Resolution in Near-synchronous Code Collaboration
Doctoral Symposium
Leon Freudenthaler FH Campus Wien
17:30
30m
Talk
Human-centric Requirements Engineering for Digital Health Software for Aging People
Doctoral Symposium
Yuqing Xiao Monash University
17:30
30m
Talk
Automatically Generating Single-Responsibility Unit Tests
Doctoral Symposium
Geraldine Galindo-Gutierrez Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Exactas e Ingenierías, Universidad Católica Boliviana
17:30
30m
Talk
Exploring GenAI-Driven Innovation in Game Development
Doctoral Symposium
Xiang Chen University of Waterloo
17:30
30m
Talk
Addressing Recurring Bugs and Workflow Challenges in Quantum Software EngineeringQuantum
Doctoral Symposium
Jake Zappin William and Mary
17:30
30m
Talk
Understanding and Supporting the ML Supply Chain through ML Bill of Materials
Doctoral Symposium
Trevor Stalnaker William & Mary
17:30
30m
Talk
Energy efficiency through architectural tactics for self-adaptive Cloud systems
Doctoral Symposium
Henrique David de Medeiros Télécom SudParis, Institut Polytechnique de Paris
17:30
30m
Talk
Intelligent Automation for Accelerating the Repair of Software Build Failures
Doctoral Symposium
Gengyi Sun University of Waterloo
Pre-print
17:30
30m
Talk
Decoding the Impostor Phenomenon: Unveiling Factors and Mitigation Strategies for Software Professionals
Doctoral Symposium
Paloma Guenes Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio)
17:30
30m
Talk
Automated Repair of Cyber-Physical Systems
Doctoral Symposium
Pablo Valle Mondragon University
Pre-print
17:30
30m
Talk
Distilling Reference Architectures from Open Source Repositories
Doctoral Symposium
Thi Dinh Tran Gran Sasso Science Institute
17:30
30m
Talk
Structured State Space Exploration of Dash+ Models
Doctoral Symposium
Aditya Shankar Narayanan University of Waterloo
17:30
30m
Talk
Interactions with Generative AI: Wearables to Measure Developer Experience and Productivity Objectively
Doctoral Symposium
Charlotte Brandebusemeyer Hasso Plattner Institute, University of Potsdam
17:30
30m
Talk
User perceptions of ethical issues in software
Doctoral Symposium
Tom P Humbert Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
17:30
30m
Talk
Advancing Cognitive Inclusivity in Software Engineering Tools and Practices
Doctoral Symposium
Faith Culas University of Auckland
17:30
30m
Talk
Build and Runtime Integrity for Java
Doctoral Symposium
Aman Sharma KTH Royal Institute of Technology
Pre-print
17:30
30m
Talk
Rethinking Software Development Considering Collaboration with AI Assistants
Doctoral Symposium
Benedetta Donato University of Milano - Bicocca
17:30
30m
Talk
Trustworthiness of Large Language Models for Code
Doctoral Symposium
Dipin Khati William & Mary

Thu 1 May

Displayed time zone: Eastern Time (US & Canada) change

17:30 - 18:00
Doctoral Symposium Poster Session (Thursday) at Canada Hall 3 poster areaDoctoral Symposium at Canada Hall 3 Poster Area
17:30
30m
Talk
Understanding and Supporting the ML Supply Chain through ML Bill of Materials
Doctoral Symposium
Trevor Stalnaker William & Mary
17:30
30m
Talk
Improving Software Engineering Team Communication Through Stronger Social Networks
Doctoral Symposium
April Clarke University of Canterbury
17:30
30m
Talk
Interactions with Generative AI: Wearables to Measure Developer Experience and Productivity Objectively
Doctoral Symposium
Charlotte Brandebusemeyer Hasso Plattner Institute, University of Potsdam
17:30
30m
Talk
Decoding the Impostor Phenomenon: Unveiling Factors and Mitigation Strategies for Software Professionals
Doctoral Symposium
Paloma Guenes Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio)
17:30
30m
Talk
Towards Quality Assurance of Natural Language in Code
Doctoral Symposium
Renyi Zhong The Chinese University of Hong Kong
17:30
30m
Talk
Exploring GenAI-Driven Innovation in Game Development
Doctoral Symposium
Xiang Chen University of Waterloo
17:30
30m
Talk
Addressing Recurring Bugs and Workflow Challenges in Quantum Software EngineeringQuantum
Doctoral Symposium
Jake Zappin William and Mary
17:30
30m
Talk
Towards Fully-Traceable Human-Centred Design
Doctoral Symposium
Christopher Schankula McMaster University
17:30
30m
Talk
A BizDevOps-Aligned Framework for Integrating Security Practices in Agile Software Development
Doctoral Symposium
Alejandra Selva-Mora Universidad de Costa Rica
17:30
30m
Talk
Customer Validation, Feedback and Collaboration in Large-Scale Continuous Software Development
Doctoral Symposium
David Molamphy University of Limerick
17:30
30m
Talk
Automated Repair of Cyber-Physical Systems
Doctoral Symposium
Pablo Valle Mondragon University
Pre-print
17:30
30m
Talk
Intelligent Automation for Accelerating the Repair of Software Build Failures
Doctoral Symposium
Gengyi Sun University of Waterloo
Pre-print
17:30
30m
Talk
Trustworthiness of Large Language Models for Code
Doctoral Symposium
Dipin Khati William & Mary
17:30
30m
Talk
Automatically Generating Single-Responsibility Unit Tests
Doctoral Symposium
Geraldine Galindo-Gutierrez Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Exactas e Ingenierías, Universidad Católica Boliviana
17:30
30m
Talk
Augmenting the Generality and Performance of Large Language Models for Software Engineering
Doctoral Symposium
Fabian C. Peña University of Passau
17:30
30m
Talk
Semantic-aware Replicated Data Types for Improved Conflict Resolution in Near-synchronous Code Collaboration
Doctoral Symposium
Leon Freudenthaler FH Campus Wien
17:30
30m
Talk
Rethinking Software Development Considering Collaboration with AI Assistants
Doctoral Symposium
Benedetta Donato University of Milano - Bicocca
17:30
30m
Talk
Human-centric Requirements Engineering for Digital Health Software for Aging People
Doctoral Symposium
Yuqing Xiao Monash University
17:30
30m
Talk
User perceptions of ethical issues in software
Doctoral Symposium
Tom P Humbert Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
17:30
30m
Talk
Energy efficiency through architectural tactics for self-adaptive Cloud systems
Doctoral Symposium
Henrique David de Medeiros Télécom SudParis, Institut Polytechnique de Paris
17:30
30m
Talk
Build and Runtime Integrity for Java
Doctoral Symposium
Aman Sharma KTH Royal Institute of Technology
Pre-print
17:30
30m
Talk
Structured State Space Exploration of Dash+ Models
Doctoral Symposium
Aditya Shankar Narayanan University of Waterloo
17:30
30m
Talk
Advancing Cognitive Inclusivity in Software Engineering Tools and Practices
Doctoral Symposium
Faith Culas University of Auckland
17:30
30m
Talk
Distilling Reference Architectures from Open Source Repositories
Doctoral Symposium
Thi Dinh Tran Gran Sasso Science Institute

Fri 2 May

Displayed time zone: Eastern Time (US & Canada) change

17:30 - 18:00
Doctoral Symposium Poster Session (Friday) at Canada Hall 3 poster areaDoctoral Symposium at Canada Hall 3 Poster Area
17:30
30m
Talk
Distilling Reference Architectures from Open Source Repositories
Doctoral Symposium
Thi Dinh Tran Gran Sasso Science Institute
17:30
30m
Talk
Towards Quality Assurance of Natural Language in Code
Doctoral Symposium
Renyi Zhong The Chinese University of Hong Kong
17:30
30m
Talk
Augmenting the Generality and Performance of Large Language Models for Software Engineering
Doctoral Symposium
Fabian C. Peña University of Passau
17:30
30m
Talk
Towards Fully-Traceable Human-Centred Design
Doctoral Symposium
Christopher Schankula McMaster University
17:30
30m
Talk
Decoding the Impostor Phenomenon: Unveiling Factors and Mitigation Strategies for Software Professionals
Doctoral Symposium
Paloma Guenes Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio)
17:30
30m
Talk
Structured State Space Exploration of Dash+ Models
Doctoral Symposium
Aditya Shankar Narayanan University of Waterloo
17:30
30m
Talk
User perceptions of ethical issues in software
Doctoral Symposium
Tom P Humbert Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
17:30
30m
Talk
Interactions with Generative AI: Wearables to Measure Developer Experience and Productivity Objectively
Doctoral Symposium
Charlotte Brandebusemeyer Hasso Plattner Institute, University of Potsdam
17:30
30m
Talk
Improving Software Engineering Team Communication Through Stronger Social Networks
Doctoral Symposium
April Clarke University of Canterbury
17:30
30m
Talk
Automated Repair of Cyber-Physical Systems
Doctoral Symposium
Pablo Valle Mondragon University
Pre-print
17:30
30m
Talk
Build and Runtime Integrity for Java
Doctoral Symposium
Aman Sharma KTH Royal Institute of Technology
Pre-print
17:30
30m
Talk
Addressing Recurring Bugs and Workflow Challenges in Quantum Software EngineeringQuantum
Doctoral Symposium
Jake Zappin William and Mary
17:30
30m
Talk
Advancing Cognitive Inclusivity in Software Engineering Tools and Practices
Doctoral Symposium
Faith Culas University of Auckland
17:30
30m
Talk
A BizDevOps-Aligned Framework for Integrating Security Practices in Agile Software Development
Doctoral Symposium
Alejandra Selva-Mora Universidad de Costa Rica
17:30
30m
Talk
Semantic-aware Replicated Data Types for Improved Conflict Resolution in Near-synchronous Code Collaboration
Doctoral Symposium
Leon Freudenthaler FH Campus Wien
17:30
30m
Talk
Rethinking Software Development Considering Collaboration with AI Assistants
Doctoral Symposium
Benedetta Donato University of Milano - Bicocca
17:30
30m
Talk
Intelligent Automation for Accelerating the Repair of Software Build Failures
Doctoral Symposium
Gengyi Sun University of Waterloo
Pre-print
17:30
30m
Talk
Exploring GenAI-Driven Innovation in Game Development
Doctoral Symposium
Xiang Chen University of Waterloo
17:30
30m
Talk
Understanding and Supporting the ML Supply Chain through ML Bill of Materials
Doctoral Symposium
Trevor Stalnaker William & Mary
17:30
30m
Talk
Customer Validation, Feedback and Collaboration in Large-Scale Continuous Software Development
Doctoral Symposium
David Molamphy University of Limerick
17:30
30m
Talk
Trustworthiness of Large Language Models for Code
Doctoral Symposium
Dipin Khati William & Mary
17:30
30m
Talk
Human-centric Requirements Engineering for Digital Health Software for Aging People
Doctoral Symposium
Yuqing Xiao Monash University
17:30
30m
Talk
Automatically Generating Single-Responsibility Unit Tests
Doctoral Symposium
Geraldine Galindo-Gutierrez Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Exactas e Ingenierías, Universidad Católica Boliviana
17:30
30m
Talk
Energy efficiency through architectural tactics for self-adaptive Cloud systems
Doctoral Symposium
Henrique David de Medeiros Télécom SudParis, Institut Polytechnique de Paris
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