Humanitarian Work, Social Change, and Human Behavior by Cornelia C. Walther

Author:Cornelia C. Walther
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9783030458782
Publisher: Springer International Publishing

2.3.4 Who We Are Influences How the World Perceives Us

Establishing positive influence begins with authenticity, which results when a person’s intentions, words, and behaviour are aligned. As a matter of survival, the human organism has evolved over millennia to alert us to signs of untrustworthiness. Thus, those around us unconsciously detect whether our words are a true reflection of our intentions—if we are authentic or not.

Lived authenticity is the principal ingredient of influence on others and it is the foundation of social harmony. When our soul, heart, mind, and body are aligned we enter a state of inner peace, from which the harmonization of our relationships with others flows effortlessly.

Just as we shy away from situations that create internal cognitive dissonance, we refrain from engaging with individuals whose inauthenticity we detect. It may not always be possible to pinpoint a clear reason, but the presence of certain people makes us uncomfortable; while there are others that just make us feel good.

If we do not perceive someone as credible and authentic, that person will have little influence over us, even when the right words, mimics, and gestures are used. Being authentic is less about talking than walking. When it comes to subconscious decoding, brain scans show that non-verbal factors trump intellectual inputs. Peoples’ judgement derives to about half from a speaker’s body language, the tone of voice accounts for roughly a third, whereas the content itself accounts for about 10 percent (Mehrabian and Wiener 1967).

But exactly what is authenticity?

Among the three broad kinds of authenticity that are commonly defined, historical, categorical, and value authenticity (Newman and Smith 2016), we will focus on the third—value orientation. According to humanistic psychologists, authentic people possess several common characteristics; they have realistic perceptions of their environment; accept themselves and others; are thoughtful; have a non-hostile sense of humour; can express their emotions freely and clearly; are willing to learn from their own mistakes; and understand their personal motivations (Newman 2019). Conversely, people are perceived as inauthentic when they come across as deceptive; look to others for approval; are judgemental; do not think things through; have a hostile sense of humour; are unable to express their emotions; are unwilling to acknowledge and learn from their mistakes; and most importantly, do not understand their own motivations (Joseph 2019).

We trust those who do what they say, and practise what they preach. This may seem obvious, yet it is surprising how many people seek to influence the behaviour of others without setting an example. Someone’s arguments may seem rationally justified and morally sound, but if their own actions do not align with these argumentation, we are apprehensive to their propositions, and reluctant to change our behaviour in line with their wishes. More likely, we become even more inclined to stick to our current course of action, even seeking do the opposite of what they ask for (Lehman et al. 2019).

Taking all this together, authenticity can be distilled in four components. It involves to stand up (physical action, be it

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