impersonality

[ im-pur-suh-nal-i-tee ]

noun

, plural im·per·son·al·i·ties

1. absence of human character or of the traits associated with the human character:

   He feared the impersonality of a mechanized world.

2. absence or reduction of concern for individual needs or desires:

   the impersonality of a very large institution.

3. lack of emotional involvement:

   His work reflected a certain impersonality.

4. lack of a personal agent or of a known personal agent:

   the impersonality of folk art.

5. the quality of not being concerned with particular persons:

   the impersonality and universality of his interests.

6. something that is impersonal.

Word History and Origins

Origin of impersonality¹

First recorded in 1760–70; impersonal + -ity

Example Sentences

Initially you might think that people are more inclined to lie to strangers than to friends and family, given the impersonality of the interaction in the one case and the bonds of care and concern in the other.

From Scientific American

The intense color and ascetic impersonality of Herrera’s design, Carter’s lighting and the mysterious, splintering lines and tectonic shifts of Thorvaldsdottir’s music play equal roles with the dance in “Untitled.”

From New York Times

The publication of “Diana: Her True Story” is treated with odd impersonality, cited and then consulted, along with a sequel, “Diana: In Pursuit of Love,” for chapters on the disintegrating marriages of the queen’s children, and her infamous “annus horribilus,” when Buckingham Palace was severely damaged in a fire and Morton became part of the narrative.

From New York Times

Yet the particulars of Tarantino’s men — their identical suits, their color-coded pseudonyms, their hidden identities — underscore the impersonality of their expected behaviors, rendering them interchangeable, and thus impotent, as the salesman of “Glengarry.”

From New York Times

The routines are both highly personal and one-size-fits-all, with an odd exchange between intimacy and impersonality; someone invites you into her day, but mostly to show you how yours might be lived better.

From New York Times