What does depersonalise mean?
Depersonalise means to remove or diminish individuality, personal attention, or emotional connection. It is commonly used for processes and institutions that make people feel anonymous: a standardised service, an impersonal bureaucracy, or an automated system can depersonalise the experience of those it serves. The word also has a psychological sense, describing the sensation of being detached from one's body, identity, or emotions, as if observing oneself from the outside. This experience can occur during severe anxiety, stress, trauma, or illness. In these contexts, depersonalise is a verb and depersonalisation is the corresponding noun. The term is useful because it identifies a subtle but important effect: systems can erase individuality even when no overt mistreatment occurs, while people in distress may experience a profound disturbance in their relationship to themselves. Its British spelling is depersonalise; depersonalize is standard in US usage.
verbTo remove or reduce the personal character or identity of someone or something, making it impersonal. In psychological contexts, it can mean to make a person feel detached from their own body, identity, or emotions.
- To make a person feel detached from their own body, identity, or emotions, as though observing themselves from the outside.
- To remove the personal character or individuality of a person, process, or institution, making it impersonal or anonymous.
"The highly automated service depersonalised the customer experience, making each enquiry feel anonymous and interchangeable."
"The illness can depersonalise the patient, who may feel detached from their body and sense of identity."
"A highly automated service can depersonalise the customer experience, making each enquiry feel anonymous and interchangeable."
Depersonalise can describe an institution erasing individuality—or the mind making a person feel strangely unreal.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does depersonalise come from?
Depersonalise is formed from the established word personal, the prefix de-, and the verb-forming suffix -ise. The prefix de- comes from Latin and conveys removal or reversal, while personal derives from Latin personalis, meaning “pertaining to a person,” from persona, originally “mask” or “character.” The same Latin root underlies cognates including person, persona, and personality.
Related word forms
How depersonalise is actually used
The word is formal and often technical, especially in psychology, administration, and discussions of technology or bureaucracy. In psychological use, it is often associated with anxiety, trauma, or other distressing experiences, although the word describes a symptom or effect rather than a diagnosis itself.
Easily confused with depersonalise
Depersonalize is the US spelling of the British verb depersonalise; the meaning is the same.