Pragmatic is a philosophical movement that focuses on how people use language. This is a huge field with many branches, including formal and computational pragmatics; theoretical and applied; game-theoretical, clinical and experimental pragmatics; intercultural, sociocultural and neuropragmatics; the history of pragmatics; and more. The pragmatists who work in these fields all share a common inspiration, but they are not united by any received views.
People who are pragmatic tend to be logical and able to make clear, practical decisions in a crisis. They are not swayed by emotions or afraid to compromise. Dogmatic people, on the other hand, follow strict rules and think very little outside of those boundaries.
The word pragmatic was first recorded in the 1580s and is ultimately derived from the Greek pragma, meaning “to do; state business.” Other words with similar roots include “businesslike,” “down-to-earth,” “efficient,” “hardheaded,” and “practical.”
Essentially, pragmatism is an epistemology that argues that there are no universal or innate truths or facts; instead, beliefs have value only if they prove helpful in inquiry and action. The philosophy was first developed by Charles Sanders Peirce and later adapted by William James. It is considered a third alternative to the analytic and continental philosophical traditions.
A broad range of liberatory philosophical projects such as feminism, ecology and Native American philosophy now look to pragmatism as their philosophical home. It also influenced a number of pragmatic psychologists such as Joseph Margolis, who argued that human perception and cognition depend on task demands.
Pragmatics is a huge area of study, but it is often difficult to pin down what exactly makes something pragmatic. There are many different aspects to the discipline, such as ambiguity, indexicality and speech act theory. But there is a general understanding that pragmatics involves the use of language in context, and that it is influenced by a variety of factors.
The most recognizable feature of pragmatics is the idea that meaning is contextual. This is based on the fact that one meaning may be appropriate in one situation, while another meaning is appropriate in a completely different context. The context-dependence of meaning is a key point in pragmatics and explains why the study of linguistic pragmatics is so complex.
For example, the way in which we understand a particular statement may change depending on whether it is delivered to a colleague or to a friend. Similarly, the way in which we understand a joke may change depending on who we are talking to.
Because of this, it is important to consider the context when trying to determine what a message really means. This is especially the case when analyzing pragmatic skills goals, as they should be relevant to the individual’s social situations and needs. In addition, pragmatic skills goals should be measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. This will help individuals to stay motivated and avoid giving up on their goals due to a lack of progress.
