Pragmatic is a word that refers to an approach or a way of thinking about things that takes practical considerations into account. Pragmatism is also a philosophical trend that determines the meaning and truth of concepts through their direct, practical consequences.
It’s often said that people who are pragmatic are dispassionate and focused on results and effectiveness. In fact, those who are pragmatic tend to prioritize the practical side of a situation and focus on what will work rather than on theoretical ideals.
A key element of pragmatism is recognizing that there are multiple factors in play, including social, cultural and situational contexts. This means that when evaluating a potential action or strategy, it’s important to consider all of the ramifications, not just the immediate ones. For example, if you were to kill your creditor and not have to pay your debt, this may seem pragmatic from a narrow point of view but it would be a bad decision for the family members left behind.
Philosophically, pragmatism has wide-ranging implications for all areas of the philosophy of thought. It has a strong influence on social, ethical and legal philosophy, as well as the philosophy of science and the philosophy of religion. One of the best known pragmatists is the American philosopher Dewey, who developed an approach to education that is based on practical experience and observation.
The pragmatist philosophy is also used in the field of psychology. For example, some forms of cognitive behavioral therapy are pragmatic and aim to change the ways that an individual thinks about and reacts to specific situations. This approach can be useful for people who struggle with anxiety and other common conditions.
Pragmatism is also a key tenet of the scientific method. This approach to research examines a problem and makes a hypothesis about what may be causing it before testing that hypothesis through experimentation. For example, a scientist might develop a test to see if a particular chemical is responsible for an illness before conducting more comprehensive tests that involve multiple chemicals and people.
A contemporary pragmatist is the American philosopher Robert Brandom. He has different interests from the classic pragmatists and is critical of Peirce’s ideas about inquiry, meaning and the nature of truth. He has developed a version of inferential semantics that aims to free our use of words like ‘true’ and ‘refers to’ from the idea that they function as transcripts of reality.
The field of pragmatics is a study of the social, cultural and situational aspects of language that go beyond the traditional definition of semantics (literal meaning). For instance, when you are talking about what someone meant by something they said, it’s important to consider their motivations, the environment in which they were speaking and how the listener might interpret their intent. Pragmatics is an area of research that’s expanding rapidly, particularly in East Asia and South America. It’s a fast-growing and exciting field, and it could help us better understand how we communicate with each other.
