A study for the relationship between university students' authenticity levels and problem-solving skills

People have a strong tendency to be authentic and to avoid authenticity. Moreover, many therapeutic approaches aim to help people become authentic. For this reason, it is important for researchers not only to identify the factors that are at the center of authenticity but also to examine their relationships with different variables by considering authenticity from a situational perspective. Individuals (especially between the ages of 18-25) experience a series of new experiences and the associated complexity in reasoning skills increases. For this reason, the purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the authenticity of university students and their problem-solving skills. At the same time, in this study, the scores students got from the authenticity scale were analyzed according to various demographic variables. The study group of the research consists of a total of 443 university students, 374 women (82.2%), and 79 men (17.8%). Personal information forms developed by the researcher, Authenticity Scale, and Problem-Solving Inventory were used as data collection tools in the study. Independent samples t-test, one-way ANOVA analysis, and correlation analysis methods used to analyze the data. According to the findings, while there is no statistically significant relationship between the authenticity of university students and their state authenticity, the results shows a statistically significant relationship between the authenticity of university students and problem-solving skills. Further, statistically significant differences were found in the authenticity of university students according to their effort to be a part of a cultural and artistic activity, enjoying daily work, being a member of a club or a student community, and perceived parental attitudes. The findings were discussed in comparison to previous researches, and at the end of the study, recommendations provided based on the findings.