If there is one human trait that is universally prized, it is authenticity. Our literary heroes attest to this: protagonist Holden Caulfield of J.D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye" famously denounced the bulk of humanity as "phonies" — epitomizing the human tendency to valued those who remain genuine and deride fakers. Accordingly, most of us, Holden included, like to believe that we are skilled at differentiating between individuals who are authentic and those who are phony.
Unfortunately, we may not be that good at gauging others' genuineness — even when we believe we are. That's according to a new study, which found that it's much harder to figure out if someone's being authentic than most of us thought.
