Pragmatic is a trait that allows people to be flexible and adaptable to any situation or problem. It means they can see the positives and negatives of any course of action and choose the most useful one to take. Pragmatism can be a great quality to have but, like any character trait, it comes with its own disadvantages too.
For example, being pragmatic can cause you to be more tolerant of unscrupulous behavior. This can be from a dishonest housing agent to someone selling you food made with dirty oil. It can also be harder to find the good in other people as a result of this. It can lead to a lessening of your own morals and values if you’re always seeing the good in everyone else.
The pragmatist’s goal is to achieve the best possible result with the least amount of effort. They don’t worry about being fair or honest, so they can be a little bit careless or sloppy. They may not always put in the same effort as a thoughtfully inclined friend, but they will get the job done.
Pragmatism is a philosophy that has roots in modern Western (more specifically American) Western thought with thinkers such as Charles Sanders Peirce, William James, and John Dewey. It’s a tradition of practical, applied philosophy with an emphasis on the real-world consequences of actions. It’s often used in the context of social science research where it’s important to make sure your research is actionable and connects with respondent experiences.
It can be used in clinical settings too. For example, when choosing a treatment for a patient, a pragmatist will assess which techniques are most likely to succeed in the circumstances and give the patient the best chance of a successful outcome. This saves time and resources and increases the chances of a positive outcome.
Being pragmatic also means not being swayed by emotion or opinion. It’s a hard concept for people with very strong emotional attachments or beliefs to master. However, it’s something that can be learned with practice.
To practice being pragmatic, try to stop over-analyzing situations and just go with what works. This can be difficult to do for those with an analytical mindset, but it will improve your efficiency and ability to solve problems. It can also help you avoid making rash decisions and prevent you from getting caught up in emotional turmoil. To develop your pragmatic abilities, start with small tasks and build your confidence up. For example, instead of worrying about whether you should call the police after an accident, just report it and let them do their job. After a while, you can begin to practice more complex tasks and become more of a pragmatist in all aspects of your life.