10 Obvious Signs Of A Genuinely Fake Person, According To Psychology

While a person’s inauthenticity and fakeness can often be unsuspecting and insidious in everyday interactions and relationships, there are a few obvious signs of a genuinely fake person, according to psychology. From strange nonverbal cues to a general sense of inconsistency, you can better protect yourself from superficiality by creating distance in the face of these “red flags.”

Of course, a fake person might be charismatic or quick to find a shared experience, making you feel drawn to their presence, but in the end, they struggle with anything deeper than a surface-level interaction. They need to feel important and needed, but they struggle to actually connect with people in a vulnerable, truly authentic way.

Here are 10 obvious signs of a genuinely fake person, according to psychology

1. They’re inconsistent

inconsistent man talking to his partner PeopleImages | Shutterstock

While someone who’s regularly telling lies or deceiving others is bound to be inconsistent with facts and evidence to support their misleading claims, as a study from Frontiers in Psychology suggests, someone who’s generally inconsistent with other things in life could be a fake person.

From regularly missing commitments they offered their word in favor of to breaking promises in favor of their own self-image and bonding, this kind of social and emotional inconsistency is one of the obvious signs of a genuinely fake person, according to psychology.

2. Their personality always changes

man whose personality always changes talking on the phone Irene Miller | Shutterstock

While many of us do shift our personality and energy depending on the room we’re in and the people we’re around — from the workplace to our family homes, to social gatherings with our friends — fake people are constantly changing.

They’re not shifting into a different facet of their own authentic personality — they’re changing parts of themselves for a few moments to be more approachable and likable to the people around them. They’re essentially driven by constant external validation, meaning that the personality they try on is best suited to their target, not necessarily themselves.

Of course, this lowers self-esteem, but it also sabotages any real relationships they’ve cultivated. It’s the friend who makes fun of their peers to impress a boy, or who changes their whole mood when someone doesn’t give them the time of day.

3. They’re transactional

transactional man talking to a friend asking for something fizkes | Shutterstock

A person who doesn’t truly care about building vulnerable, intentional, deep relationships will often leverage a transactional mindset to form more surface-level ones with their peers. They expect something in return for their basic behaviors and kindnesses, so they’re always keeping score.

The kind of things that are typically unconditional in a healthy relationship, like romantic love and trust, are now weaponized to get something in return by someone who doesn’t care enough to be open and honest.

4. They use performative compassion and empathy

woman rolling her eyes at friend being fake nice Antonio Guillem | Shutterstock

Rather than leveraging empathy and compassion internally to build strong connections with others, a fake person performs them from a place of inauthenticity. They struggle to understand people in this way because they don’t understand themselves. They can’t put themselves in other people’s shoes and truly understand what they’re going through because they’re too busy mediating their own internal disconnection and turmoil.

Whether it’s rooted in insecurity or sheer ignorance, this kind of performance is one of the obvious signs of a genuinely fake person, according to psychology.

5. They never change

fake man who never changes talking to his partner Rawpixel.com | Shutterstock

Of course, you can’t change someone who doesn’t want to change. And for a fake person who often lacks the emotional intelligence and self-awareness to reflect on their patterns of behavior, it’s not surprising that they truly never change.

They’re not only missing out on chances to appreciate their own quiet and alone time for reflection, but they’re also struggling to accept themselves and make good personal changes to better their lives, like a study from Europe’s Journal of Psychology.

6. They care deeply about how they’re perceived by others

men who care deeply about how they're perceived by others talking Krakenimages.com | Shutterstock

According to psychologist Bonnie Zucker, many people leverage social media and fake, casual interactions with others to seek validation. Their self-worth and well-being are intrinsically linked to how other people perceive and feel about them, even if it comes at the expense of their true self-confidence and well-being.

Rather than being able to fulfill and gratify themselves, seeking out healthy, balanced relationships with others, they’re always focused on what they’re going to get.

7. Their values shift often

fake man whose values shift often talking on the phone MAYA LAB | Shutterstock

Instead of letting their beliefs and value system inform every aspect of their lives from the foundation and core of who they are, if someone is a genuinely fake person, these things shift in every passing moment.

They care more about appeasing others and seeking out external validation for internal stability than upholding a sense of moral goodness. So, it’s not surprising that one of the obvious signs of a genuinely fake person, according to psychology, is their moral passivity and flippancy.

8. They hardly ever ask for help

struggling man who hardly ever asks for help PeopleImages | Shutterstock

People who struggle with fake kindness usually also struggle with a deep sense of inadequacy and low self-worth. Their only sense of internal security comes from what other people think of them, so of course they rarely ask for help to benefit personal growth and learning.

They perceive mistakes or admissions of ignorance about things to be “weaknesses,” even if asking for help is exactly when they need to boost someone else’s social perception.

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9. Their kindness feels fake

woman talking on phone to someone whose kindness feels fake MAYA LAB | Shutterstock

Many people can spot fake kindness more easily than other obvious signs of inauthenticity, largely because it often feels performative from the start. From offering a million compliments to clinging onto someone in a social interaction, it’s almost always easy to decipher between someone who’s genuinely kind and intentional and someone whose kindness feels forced and performative.

They don’t care to make real connections with anyone because they’re too caught up in using them for personal gain.

10. They care a lot about status

men who care about status talking at work Gorgev | Shutterstock

From “sucking up” to authority figures and people in power and treating people in perceived lower “status” with more angst and frustration, these are some of the obvious signs of a genuinely fake person, according to psychology.

Not only do they care about promoting their own self-image and status to people they deem as “more important,” they often use people like service workers and others they perceive to be lower in social status as “scapegoats” for their own emotional turmoil.

Zayda Slabbekoorn is a senior editorial strategist with a bachelor’s degree in social relations & policy and gender studies who focuses on psychology, relationships, self-help, and human interest stories.