what do you mean by integrity and authenticity
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Answer:
The word integrity comes from the Latin root word for integrates, meaning wholeness. ... Actually, Integrity is about authenticity; being true to who and what you are and embodying that in every aspect of your life. The first step to living with integrity and authenticity is the “knowing thyself” component of integrity.
The word “integrity” typically refers to honesty in one’s statements or in one’s dealings, but the underlying ideal is an apparent lack of hypocrisy. A person with integrity thus acts in accord with how he presents himself. In this sense, integrity is a type of self-consistency in one’s character. One successfully behaves in line with the ideals one professes.
Integrity is a highly socially desired quality, insofar as society knows exactly what to expect from such people. They are dependable, reliable, and “honest.”
“Authenticity” is integrity taken up to another level, for in this case one is not only true to one’s professed ideals, but one’s professed ideals are now accurate reflections of one’s deepest feelings, values, and commitments. One is true to oneself and not led along by various forces of conformity and self-alienation, such as, famously, repressed complexes (Freudianism), “false consciousness” (Marxism), “bad faith” (Existentialism), or just the good old ego (Buddhism). Authenticity is a total integration of behavior, self-conception, personal ideals, and the true self that stands behind these more superficial and outward phenomena.
Authenticity is a personally valuable quality, for growth in authenticity involves progress in self-knowledge and the increasing self-actualization of the person. It can, however, be socially undesirable insofar as the authentic person is committed to something higher than mere conformity to professed ideals and the expectations of others. As often as not, authentic people are socially disruptive.
Although there is no reason why integrity and authenticity could not be compatible, they often are not. Given the conditions in which we live our lives, there seems to be a deep tension between the two, as if progress in one direction must involve retreat in the other.
On the one hand, acting with integrity often comes at the expense of authenticity, as when people are so dedicated to their principles, so concerned to do what is considered right, that they are not being true to themselves or their humanity. Principles or ideals become idols standing in the way of the truth.
On the other hand, growth towards authenticity often involves apparent breeches in integrity, insofar as one will often fail to adhere to accepted ideals in the process of moving on towards higher and more authentic ideals. Sometimes a false image needs to be shattered.
This is why so many people who seem “good” are actually bad, and so many people who seem “bad” are actually good. Many “good” people are committed to their ideals in a way that causes a rigidity and a falseness that makes them hard to be around. In spite of their reliability, we sense that something is not well with them and often find their company to be oppressive. On the other hand, many people who are “bad,” in the sense of being socially non-conforming or perhaps undependable, are nevertheless admirable for the deeper honesty, fluidity, and grace that they bring to their lives.
If life in our culture can be compared to the struggle to survive after the sinking of a great ship (as I think it can), then the person with integrity is like someone who has found a buoy to which he successfully clings. The person with authenticity, however, is like someone who has learned to swim and thrive in the ocean. There are risks either way, to be sure. But only one of them has a chance to make it back to shore — or, if he pleases, to stay happily in the ocean.