Pragmatic is the ability to recognize how a situation plays out, make choices that benefit you most, and take steps to ensure your success. Someone who is pragmatic is someone who can make clear, calm decisions when a problem arises and get the job done—no matter how large or small the issue is. People who are pragmatic tend to be businesslike, efficient, and hardheaded. However, there are differences between pragmatic and dogmatic, so it’s important to understand the nuances of the word.
The origins of the term “pragmatic” are rooted in a Latin word, pragmatio, which means “to do something.” This is a word that has several synonyms: practical, realistic, and businesslike are just a few. The first recorded use of the word was in 1580-90, and the word has been used ever since to describe a person who knows how to get things done.
A central concept of pragmatism is the idea that reality is not static but rather in a constant state of becoming and that change is the result of actions. This concept enables pragmatists to see how an individual’s experiences, beliefs, and knowledge are shaped by social interaction and how those experiences shape the way they act (Goldkuhl 2012; Morgan 2014a).
In its classical form, pragmatism is an epistemological philosophy. Its emphasis on experience makes it a natural fit for research on organizational processes. It can help researchers develop a’mediated’ understanding of complex organizational processes, which can be difficult to achieve without the guidance of a framework such as pragmatism (Lorino et al. 2010).
Pragmatism is also an analytical philosophy, as it focuses on how we construct meaning. It relates closely to semantics, which is the study of the meaning of words. This can include the meaning of a particular utterance, the circumstances of its utterance, and the speaker’s intentions. It can also address how we communicate those intentions to others.
It is also an instrumentalist philosophy, in that it focuses on what works to achieve our goals. This is the view that was developed by William James and Charles Sanders Peirce. It is different from the view of a philosopher such as Schiller, who dismisses formal logic, because pragmatists see it as one of many tools in our toolbox rather than the ultimate truth.
Computational pragmatism, a branch of pragmatics that is concerned with constructing computer systems that are able to process language and information as humans do, is an example of an application of this philosophy. It seeks to develop algorithms that allow computers to more accurately understand and communicate with humans, especially when dealing with ambiguous situations. A crucial part of this is reference resolution, which is the process by which a computer determines when two objects are the same or when they differ. A key challenge in this field is to come up with a system that can do this as quickly and accurately as possible, since it will significantly increase the speed at which computers can operate and work with complex data.
