At first, the idea of claiming an achievement you never earned sounds amazing. Especially in a world that’s all about milestones, awards, certifications and degrees. It’s very important for us to obtain those achievements often, because not only does it keep us competitive, it also legitimatizes the things that we can bring to the table. But why are people claiming achievements they did not earn? What’s the psychology behind this? Let’s find out!

The nature of achievements

For most people, achievements are related directly to their identity. Most people define themselves by their accomplishments. And that gives them a sense of belonging, but also self-worth and education. For them, getting a fake diploma makes them feel better, and it increases the chances of reaching spots in their career that would otherwise be inaccessible in most cases. 

Plus, no one wants to feel that their achievements fall short of expectations. They want people to be happy with the stuff that they achieved, and no one wants to disappoint the others in their lives. So yes, sometimes they will try to claim achievements which wouldn’t be theirs in the first place.

Self-justification is important

People hold conflicting beliefs when it comes to what they are and what they should be. They think that it’s ok for them to fake an achievement, if that brings them where they want themselves to be in life. Even if it doesn’t seem like a massive change, it does show that people will do anything to appear better than they are. 

Plus, there’s an innate tension in their life from people and others that want to see great results from them. So yes, they will do everything in their power to appear ahead, even fake achievements when they seem impossible to get. It’s not a singular case, a lot of people are doing this type of stuff, and it’s becoming commonplace, to their detriment a lot of the time.

It leads to the impostor syndrome

For a lot of people, the impostor syndrome is what pushes this need to have achievements more and more in life. Some of them feel incompetent and unable to reach the type of achievements that they always wanted to have in life. And while it does seem hard to access those results, faking achievements is the best way forward for them. Exaggeration becomes a major coping mechanism for them, which will help them transgress any problems at their own pace.

We also have to think of the social pressure. Whether we acknowledge it or not, this exists, and it can be from a multitude of people. For most of us, this comes from family or friends. People want you to achieve success, true, but sometimes they have unrealistic expectations. What you need to realize is that you must be honest with yourself. Realistically, people will always push you to the limits when it comes to expectations.

However, your focus is to represent who you truly are. It’s a cop out to try and claim achievements that are not yours. Even if it is a success at first, it will only bring in problems in the long term especially if you fake these achievements in the business environment. Fake achievements might sound great in your career, but in the long term, they will only damage it. you want to be honest and not fake your career path. Because whenever a single issue is encountered, people will also question the validity of your real achievements, too.

The role of opportunity structures

Behavior will usually be shaped by the environment. And in a lot of cases, you will have conditions that make it easier and also more tempting to claim unearned achievements. Remote work is a prime example, it’s where a lot of people will try to fake their credentials because few companies will verify credentials for remote work. 

Additionally, weak verification systems can prove to be easier to get past, which increases the number of people who will try to fake their credentials. And of course, there are high stakes, which means people are willing to fake credentials because the cost of failure is high. They are ok with taking the risk that comes from faking an achievement they never had in the first place.

Gradual escalation incoming

The problem with people who claim an achievement that’s not theirs one time is that they will try to do it again. And when you do so, it’s very difficult to stop. Unless, of course, you will end up caught. That’s the thing, not getting caught only reinforces the behavior, which could lead to severe consequences down the line. Even if you’re not caught now, in the long run you will get caught, and that will become an issue.

Ethics will always be a problem here, because people who fake achievements will always try to justify it. For example, they will say that everyone is doing it, so it warrants them doing the same. On top of that, a small exaggeration doesn’t hurt anyone, at least in their opinion. That’s why you have to find ways of handling things effectively, and it could be a whole lot faster than expected. 

Are there any consequences?

You can’t fake things and expect to not see any consequences. Even if these will not appear right away, at some point, you will encounter them. And they can be anything from anxiety and fear of exposure to an erosion of self-trust and a relationship strain. Plus, performance pressure is also going to be a major issue to take into account. 

Conclusion

It’s easy to see why people claim an achievement they never earned. They want to show people their success, and they also want to be the person they see themselves as, in their own mind. Aside from that, there’s also societal pressure which pushes them to fake some achievements. However, doing this comes with severe consequences, especially if you continue faking achievements left and right when you’re not caught.