1. in psychotherapy and counseling, genuineness and caring demonstrated by the therapist or counselor through a down-to-earth attitude that the client senses to be a reflection of the true person and not simply of a professional acting in his or her professional role.

2. in existentialism, a mode of being that humans can achieve by accepting the burden of freedom, choice, and responsibility and the need to construct their own values and meanings in a meaningless universe. —authentic adj.