Context: The Impostor Phenomenon (IP), the persistent belief of being a fraud despite evident competence, is common in Software Engineering (SE), where high expectations for expertise and innovation prevail. Although coaching and similar interventions are proposed to mitigate IP, empirical evidence in SE remains underexplored. Objective: This study examines the impact of a structured group coaching intervention on reducing IP feelings among early-career software engineers. Method: We conducted a quasi-experiment with 20 participants distributed across two project teams using a wait-list control design, complemented by non-participant observation. The treatment group received a three-session coaching intervention, while the control group received it after an observation phase. IP was assessed using the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS), alongside evaluated measures of well-being (WHO-5), life satisfaction (SWLS), and affect (PANAS). Results: The coaching resulted in modest reductions in CIPS scores, whereas the control group also improved during the observation phase, suggesting that contextual and temporal factors may have exerted a stronger influence than the formal intervention. Conclusion: These results suggest that coaching may support reflection and awareness related to IP, yet other contextual aspects of team collaboration and project work might also contribute to these changes. This study offers a novel empirical step toward understanding how structured IP interventions operate within SE environments.

翻译：背景：冒名顶替现象（IP）指尽管能力明显却持续认为自己是个骗子的信念，这在普遍存在高专业与创新期望的软件工程（SE）领域中十分常见。尽管辅导及类似干预措施被提议用于缓解IP，但SE领域的实证证据仍显不足。目的：本研究探讨结构化团体辅导干预对降低早期职业软件工程师IP感受的影响。方法：我们采用等待列表对照设计，辅以非参与式观察，对分布在两个项目团队的20名参与者进行了准实验。实验组接受了三次辅导干预，而对照组则在观察阶段结束后接受干预。IP使用克劳斯冒名顶替现象量表（CIPS）进行评估，同时评估了幸福感（WHO-5）、生活满意度（SWLS）和情感状态（PANAS）。结果：辅导干预使CIPS得分略有下降，而对照组在观察阶段也有所改善，这表明情境与时间因素可能比正式干预产生了更强的影响。结论：这些结果表明，辅导可能有助于促进与IP相关的反思和意识，但团队协作与项目工作的其他情境因素也可能促成了这些变化。本研究为理解结构化IP干预如何在SE环境中发挥作用提供了新颖的实证探索。