civil inattention; civil indifference
Sociological term coined by Erving Goffman; the polite, minimal acknowledgment of strangers in public spaces, such as a brief glance and then looking away to show no threat or intrusion.
In the elevator, people practice civil inattention.
Civil inattention in public places serves to protect each other's privacy.
Compound of 儀礼的 (ritualistic, ceremonial) and 無関心 (indifference, apathy). The term is a direct translation of the English sociological concept 'civil inattention'.