Pragmatic is a way of thinking or acting that puts practical considerations above theoretical ideals and abstract principles. Being pragmatic means prioritizing results and effectiveness, as well as being flexible, adaptable, and willing to compromise. Pragmatic people are natural problem-solvers who seek solutions that work in real-world situations. They are also realistic and recognize limitations, which helps them to set achievable goals for themselves and their patients in clinical hypnosis.
Pragmatism is most often contrasted with idealism, but the word pragmatic itself isn’t always used negatively. Applied fields like public administration, leadership studies, and international relations have incorporated the philosophy of pragmatism into their theories and methodologies.
The tenets of pragmatism are centered around the belief that ideas must be tested in the world of experience to determine their value. This method of thinking is called “pragmatic experimentation,” and it was popularized by philosopher William James. James argued that beliefs only qualify as true or false depending on how they serve to survive in the world of experience and action. In the world of pragmatism, nothing is held to be necessarily true, and even the belief that prayer is heard is only considered valid insofar as it has beneficial effects in coping with a difficult situation.
In the realm of language, pragmatics is the study of the meaning of words and phrases in context, as opposed to the logical study of semantics, which concerns the interpretation of sentences in terms of their propositional content. It’s also important to distinguish pragmatics from linguistics, which is the study of grammar and syntax. Pragmatics is a subset of linguistics, and some linguists consider it to be an independent branch.
The concept of pragmatism has also been applied to the field of bioethics, as a way of determining what actions are ethical and moral. For example, a person who is pragmatic may make sure they have extra keys made (and leave them with friends or family) so that they can avoid locking themselves out of their house. A pragmatic person is also more likely to take precautions against natural disasters, and they will try to prepare for them by having a backup plan.
Another area of pragmatics involves the context-dependence of various aspects of linguistic interpretation, such as reference resolution, indexicals, and anaphors. This is called near-side pragmatics, and it’s important to distinguish this from the classical or far-side pragmatics of the era of classic pragmatism. Specifically, near-side pragmatics is concerned with establishing facts about a speaker’s intentions and the influences that context can have on the meaning of utterances. This type of pragmatics is not as formalized as the logical theory of semantics and intuitionistic semantics, but it’s an important part of the development of the discipline.
