This research explores how ‘authenticity’ is constructed in counselling psychology and asks what the ethical implications of this commonly taken-for-granted value might be. A discourse analytic approach known as ‘critical discursive psychology’ was used to examine eight counselling psychologists’ talk of ‘authenticity’ in semi-structured interviews. The analysis suggested that counselling psychologists may draw on a number of interpretative repertoires regarding ‘authenticity’, using them to establish their identity and negotiate their relationships with clients. However, taken together these repertoires might be said to form an ‘authenticity ideal’, which often functions to position the therapist as authentic and the client as inauthentic. Furthermore, in drawing upon various psychotherapeutic and humanistic discourses, the participants in this study appeared to be distanced from their power in positioning clients as inauthentic, although they demonstrated a problematizing of their own ‘authenticity’ in relation to the need for professional boundaries. This research suggests that talk of ‘authenticity’ tends to locate therapeutic action within a humanistic moral discourse of self-unity. This is of concern because the emphasis on individualism may lead therapists to underestimate the social and relational context of their clients’ difficulties. It should be noted that this critique falls not on the individuals involved in this research, for their answers were consistent with a range of accepted theoretical guidelines; but instead upon the reification of authenticity within counselling psychology and Western society in general. The participants in this study further problematized ‘authenticity’ in terms of needing to balance it with the demands of training and employment organisations. It was found that ii both institutional power and individual embodiment may act as ‘extra-discursive’ influences and constraints upon ‘authenticity’ discourse; however, the methodological feasibility of a critical-realist epistemology within discursive research is questioned. The limitations of the research findings and their relevance for reflexive practice are considered.

How Belly Dance practitioners in England construct a sense of self-identity, social-identity and identity-in-practice in a border-crossing Belly Dance ethnoscape is of interest for this research project. What kinds of identities-in-practice do Belly Dancers in England construct in order to authenticate their performance? By applying social theories of education and identity formation, in particular Holland et al’s “figured worlds” (2001), it is possible to critically frame the development of a practitioner’s Belly Dance identity over a period of time. The research presents the case that Belly Dance in England has an identifiable past and present practice, one that continually wrestles with ownership of what is apparently a Middle Eastern cultural export. Drawing from a literature based case study of two pioneering artists in the early 1980s, Hilal and Buonaventura, the research describes a distinctive English Belly Dance tradition and identities. There is an explanation of how the English Belly Dance form has since competed on the global stage. The research also describes how current inheritors of that tradition −Anne White, Caroline Afifi and Siouxsie Cooper are taken as case studies− appropriate and signal Egyptian Belly Dance as the dominant reference point from which to authenticate their dancing practice; whilst at the same time subverting the Orientalist paradigm underpinning the Belly Dance trope. Identifying “narratives of authenticity” enable the current generations of English Belly Dancers to form distinctive Belly Dancing identities-in-practice. Drawing from both social theories of education and identity formation and reflexive ethnographic modes of inquiry, Walk like an Egyptian examines Belly Dance in England as a translocated dance form, and the mechanisms which allow its authenticity are analysed. In answer to the research question it is possible for an English practitioner of Belly Dance to produce an authentic Belly Dance performance through the production of various narratives of authenticity, narratives which both borrow from and resist pre-existing narratives of authenticity.

This essay looks at cultural commoditization by indigenous people in Third World countries in response to tourism. The common assumption is that commoditization invalidates a culture and that it somehow becomes inauthentic. I show that even though the Indians of the Peruvian highlands sell their “Indianess” for tourists to photograph, the real commoditization takes place by mestizos who appropriate Indian culture: their dress, rituals, handicrafts. The Indians and mestizos are both trying to maximize their share of tourism revenue, little of which actually gets to the highlands. Neither culture, however, becomes inauthentic in the process. While the meanings of cultural products may be altered over time, no culture is static and fixed in time: new meanings are relevant within the context of contemporary society. / Arts, Faculty of / Anthropology, Department of / Graduate

Marketing strategies are changing how businesses sell their products. The body positivity movement is causing consumers to examine companies to determine if their intentions are authentic. Some of the ways consumers evaluate company authenticity include examining corporate social responsibility reports, types of advertising, or the brand-cause fit between the company and the body positivity movement. The author of this study followed two companies (Dove and Aerie) that are known for body positive advertising messages and two companies (Mattel/Barbie and Victoria Secret) that are known for promoting unrealistic body expectations. The author examined each companies’ mission statement, annual report, and types of media being used to determine whether the companies were doing what they say they are doing. The researchers found that Dove and Aerie demonstrated company values consistent with their body positivity campaigns; however, both had opportunities to increase their emphasis on inclusion and diversity in their advertising campaigns and media presence. Mattel and Victoria’s Secret had inclusive and diverse campaigns and media presence but focused on empowerment of women rather than body positivity. In the final analysis, Aerie had the most consistency between its brand and its body positivity campaigns. Further, the author found that Aerie’s campaigns promoted true body positivity with models of various ethnicities, sizes, disabilities, and illnesses. Aerie has raised the bar for companies joining the body positivity movement by encouraging women to accept the “imperfect” bodies they were born with. This study has academic and industry contributions due to the comparative analyses of the body positivity marketing campaigns of American-owned brands. The results could inform companies of their strengths and areas of opportunity in consumer perceptions of brand authenticity and could provide direction for future studies focused on body positivity marketing.

The Authenticity of Body Positivity in the Media: A Comparative Analysis of Four American-Owned Companies Emma Mink and Dr. Kelly Atkins, Department of Marketing and Management, College of Business, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN. Marketing strategies are changing how businesses sell their products. The body positivity movement is causing consumers to examine companies to determine if their intentions are authentic. Some of the ways consumers evaluate company authenticity include examining corporate social responsibility reports, types of advertising, or the brand-cause fit between the company and the body positivity movement. The authors of this study followed two companies (Dove and Aerie) that are known for body positive advertising messages and two companies (Mattel/Barbie and Victoria Secret) that are known for promoting unrealistic body expectations. The authors examined each companies’ mission statement, annual report, and types of media being used in order to determine whether the companies were doing what they say they are doing. The researchers found that Dove and Aerie demonstrated company values consistent with their body positivity campaigns; however, both had opportunities to increase their emphasis on inclusion and diversity in their advertising campaigns and media presence. Mattel and Victoria’s Secret had inclusive and diverse campaigns and media presence but focused on empowerment of women rather than body positivity. In the final analysis, Aerie had the most consistency between its brand and its body positivity campaigns. Further, the authors found that Aerie’s campaigns promoted true body positivity with models of various ethnicities, sizes, disabilities, and illnesses. Aerie has raised the bar for companies joining the body positivity movement by encouraging women to accept the “imperfect” bodies they were born with. This study has academic and industry contributions due to the comparative analyses of the body positivity marketing campaigns of American-owned brands. The results could inform companies of their strengths and areas of opportunity in consumer perceptions of brand authenticity and could provide direction for future studies focused on body positivity marketing.

This thesis examines the possibilities of living an authentic life for an alcoholic, both in and out of Alcoholics Anonymous. Authenticity is explored using the existential models put forth by Jean-Paul Sartre and Soren Kierkegaard. Alcoholics Anonymous figures prominently in this analysis. It is suggested that A.A. acts inauthentically in its claims that it is not a religious organization. A.A. creates special problems for female alcoholics because of the sexist and masculinist nature of its primary literature. While A.A. claims that its message is the only way by which an alcoholic can recover, other treatment methods exist. Suggestions are made that A.A. revise its main texts, and two alternative organizations to A.A. are briefly discussed.

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