In other words, we tend to feel most authentic when our needs are being met and we feel ownership of our subjective experiences. In particular, we all tend to feel most authentic when we are feeling content, calm, loving, enthusiastic, free, competent, mindful of the present moment and open to new experiences. All people tend to feel most authentic when having the same experiences, regardless of their unique personality. The reality appears to be quite the opposite. People judge their positive behaviors as more authentic than their negative behaviors even when both behaviors are consistent with their personal characteristics and desires.Įven more perplexing, it turns out that most people’s feelings of authenticity have little to do with acting in accord with their actual nature. All around the world, people show an authenticity positivity bias: people include their most positive and moral qualities-such as kind, giving and honest-in their descriptions of their true self. So what is this true self that people are always talking about? Once you take a closer scientific examination, it seems that what people refer to as their “true self” really is just the aspects of themselves that make them feel the best about themselves.
People are simply too complex, multifaceted and often conflicted for the concept of a unitary true self to be a useful standard for assessing authenticity, either in oneself or in others.” “Given the complexity of people’s personalities, two seemingly incompatible actions might both be highly self-congruent. As Katrina Jongman-Sereno and Mark Leary conclude in their recent article “ The Enigma of Being Yourself,” This creates a real problem for the scientific investigation of a concept such as authenticity. It’s virtually impossible to think of any intentional behavior that does not reflect some genuine part of your psychological makeup, whether it’s your dispositions, attitudes, values or goals. The humanistic psychotherapist Carl Rogers noted that many people who seek psychotherapy are plagued by the question: “ Who am I, really?” While people spend so much time searching for their real self, the stark reality is that all of the aspects of your mind are part of you. Perhaps the thorniest issue of them all though is the entire notion of the real self. So a test that asks people to report how authentic they are is unlikely to be a truly accurate measure of their authenticity. However, people often do not know what they are really like or why they actually do what they do. Virtually all measures of authenticity involve self-report measures. Are you being most authentic when you are being congruent with your physiological states, emotions and beliefs, whatever they may be? Or are you being most authentic when you are congruent with your consciously chosen beliefs, attitudes and values? How about when you are being congruent across the various situations and social roles of your life? Which form of “being true to yourself” is the real authenticity: was it the time you really gave that waiter a piece of your mind or that time you didn’t tell the waiter how you really felt about their dismal performance because you value kindness and were true to your higher values?Īnother thorny issue is measurement. One big problem with authenticity is that there is a lack of consensus among both the general public and among psychologists about what it actually means for someone or something to be authentic. Many common ideas about authenticity are being overturned. However, the more that researchers have put authenticity under the microscope, the more muddied the waters of authenticity have become. As children we are taught to just “be ourselves,” and as adults we can choose from a large number of self-help books that will tell us how important it is to get in touch with our “real self.” It’s taken as a given by everyone that authenticity is a real thing and that it is worth cultivating.Įven the science of authenticity has surged in recent years, with hundreds of journal articles, conferences and workshops. Authenticity is one of the most valued characteristics in our society.