Authenticity is a technical term used in
psychology as well as
existentialist philosophy and
aesthetics (in regards to various arts and musical genres). In existentialism, authenticity is the degree to which one is true to one's own personality, spirit, or character, despite external pressures; the
conscious self is seen as coming to terms with being in a material world and with encountering external forces, pressures, and influences which are very different from, and
other than, itself. A lack of authenticity is considered in existentialism to be
bad faith.