Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 4, 2025

Creating Virtual-hand and Virtual-face Illusions to Investigate Self-representation
Published on: March 1, 2017
The Authentic Self Is the Self-Enhancing Self: A Self-Enhancement Framework of Authenticity
Corey L Guenther1, Yiyue Zhang2, Constantine Sedikides3
1Creighton University, Omaha, NE, USA.
None:
Authenticity refers to behaving in a manner that aligns with one's true self. The true self, though, is positive. From a self-enhancement standpoint, people exaggerate their strengths and overlook their shortcomings, forming positively-distorted views of themselves. We propose a self-enhancement framework of authenticity, advocating a reciprocal relation between the two constructs. Trait self-enhancement was associated with higher trait authenticity (Study 1), and day-to-day fluctuations in self-enhancement predicted corresponding variations in state authenticity (Study 2). Furthermore, manipulating self-enhancement elevated state authenticity (Studies 3-4), which was associated with meaning in life (Study 4), and manipulating authenticity augmented self-enhancement, which was associated with meaning in life and thriving (Study 5). The authentic self is largely the self-enhancing self.
More Related Videos
04:51A Modified Mirror Test as a Visual Guide for the Self-awareness Trait in Wild Antarctica Penguins, Pygoscelis adeliae
Published on: July 8, 2025
08:01Virtual Hand with Ambiguous Movement between the Self and Other Origin: Sense of Ownership and 'Other-Produced' Agency
Published on: October 28, 2020
Related Concept Videos
Self-Evaluation: Self-Enhancement and Self-Verification
The Sense of Self: Reflected Self-Appraisal and Social Comparison
Self-Schemas
Self-Discrepancy Theory
Self-Presentation: Self-Monitoring and Self-Handicapping
Carl Rogers' Humanistic Perspective on Personality
The organism refers to an individual's inherent blueprint, which Rogers saw as innately positive and directed toward helping others, unlike Freud's view of the id as driven by base impulses. The self is a person's...