Self-judgments of authenticity

People feel more authentic at certain times than at others, and people differ in how authentic they believe they are overall. Although self-judgments of authenticity and inauthenticity are important to people, we know little about factors that influence people’s inferences about or reactions to their authenticity. Three studies examined beliefs about authenticity and the criteria people use to assess whether their actions are congruent with who they really are. Authenticity beliefs fell into three categories that: (a) require strict behavioral and attitudinal congruence across time and situations, (b) allow behavioral and attitudinal flexibility across time and situations, and (c) view all behaviors as inevitably authentic. Study 1 showed that these three construals of authenticity correlated in meaningful ways with views about authenticity and behavioral variability. In Study 2, inducing the belief that all behavior is authentic led participants to feel more authentic. Study 3 challenged participants’ reasons for feeling inauthentic, which led them to feel more authentic and confirmed the use of these criteria to judge authenticity. Results showed that self-judgments of authenticity were affected by factors unrelated to self-congruence per se, such as the positivity of the behavior and the stringency of their construals of authenticity.

Duke Scholars

Author Mark R. Leary Psychology & Neuroscience