Journal of Organizational Behavior

And I think once you see it like that, it's very difficult to unsee that.

And there was some research published in the Journal of Organizational Behavior several years ago now.

And it said that, yes, leaders can be attachment figures.

Yes, colleagues can be attachment figures.

Yet some accomplished people continue to question whether they belong in leadership roles even after years of strong performance.

New research published in the Journal of Organizational Behavior helps explain why.

Based on in-depth life narrative interviews with 22 organizational leaders, the researchers found that people developed a stronger leader identity by making meaning of their experiences across different stages of their careers.

Most described moving gradually from uncertainty and imposter feelings toward a more coherent sense of themselves as leaders.