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parochial attitude

parochial attitude

8.0
A way of thinking that only cares about local matters and ignores wider issues
  • noun
  • /pəˈroʊkiəl ˈætɪtjud/
translation icon : actitud parroquial
  • The organization's parochial attitude prevents it from engaging with diverse perspectives that could lead to innovation.

Examples

  • Many people criticized him for his parochial attitude, believing that he was too focused on local issues instead of global problems.

  • And you'd be right, but that's a narrow parochial attitude from where you were raised.

  • Her parochial attitude towards education limited her understanding of different cultures and ideas.

Synonyms

insularity
vsparochial attitude
2 9.4

Being separate from other places and having a narrow view of the world

is about focusing on local concerns rather than physical or cultural isolation
narrow-mindedness
vsparochial attitude
2 7.4

Not willing to accept opinions or ways that are different from your own

is specifically about a narrow view focused on local or small matters
parochialism
vsparochial attitude
1 9.6

A narrow way of thinking that focuses on local issues

is the same in meaning and differs only as an alternative label
provincialism
vsparochial attitude
1 9.3

A strong focus on local customs and a dislike of outside ideas

is broader, stressing a limited perspective rather than only customs
localism
vsparochial attitude
1 7.2

Strong loyalty to one's own community and its interests

is about a narrow mindset rather than a political or loyalty stance
narrowness
vsparochial attitude
1 6.5

Unwillingness to accept ideas or people different from your own

highlights a local or small focus in addition to general intolerance
particularism
vsparochial attitude
  • Specialized
1 9.6

A focus on one person, group, or interest instead of the whole

is focused on local small concerns rather than selective case attention
parochiality
vsparochial attitude
9.0

A narrow way of thinking that focuses only on a small group

is the same idea but often used as a general quality noun
provinciality
vsparochial attitude
9.3

A narrow view of the world that cares only about local matters

places more weight on local small concerns than on broader issues
sectionalism
vsparochial attitude
  • Formal
9.6

A strong loyalty to one region that harms the rest of the country

is a general limited perspective, not specifically political regional loyalty
insularism
vsparochial attitude
9.9

A way of thinking that keeps a country apart and closed to outside ideas

is concerned with local small issues rather than mere physical separation

Antonyms

80 3.7

Ready to listen to new ideas and accept different views

65 3.6

Willing to accept different ideas and people

How Narrow

narrowness
1 6.5
parochialism
1 9.6
parochial attitude
8.0

Surface Forms

Morphology

parochial + attitude

The phrase's meaning is directly compositional: 'parochial' (narrow, locally focused) modifies 'attitude' (way of thinking), yielding a narrow-minded outlook. This simple adjective + noun combination follows common cross-linguistic patterns, so a learner who knows both constituents can readily infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Parochial attitude may come from the old word for a local church area, a parish. People who only cared about their small parish could not see beyond local things, so 'parochial' came to mean 'narrow' or 'limited', and parochial attitude means having a small, local way of thinking.