Pragmatic is an adjective that means “concerned with practical matters and real-world results” or “as practical as possible.” As a philosophy, pragmatism focuses on the connection between thought and action. It is an idea that’s become popular in many fields, including public administration, political science, leadership studies, and international relations.
There is a lot of debate on whether pragmatics is the same as pragmatism. However, they are quite similar, with the only difference being that pragmatic is a Latin word and pragmatism is an English one. Both words have a long history, though, and the meanings of pragmatics and pragmatism are very similar.
For example, pragmatics deals with the contextual meaning of our language, rather than just the literal sense of words and sentences. This makes it very important to consider social, cultural, and situational factors when using language. Pragmatics is also the study of how we communicate with each other in our daily lives. It’s what allows us to politely hedge a request, cleverly read between the lines of what someone says, negotiate turn-taking norms in conversation, and navigate ambiguity in context.
A person who is pragmatic in their approach to life focuses more on the outcome of a situation and what works best for everyone involved. For example, a friend who kills their creditor would be pragmatic in that they wouldn’t have to worry about paying their debts anymore, but it isn’t very ethical.
This type of pragmatic thinking is very useful for people who are faced with a difficult situation, but it can lead to bad decisions if the person gets too caught up in their emotions or big-picture ideals. A dogmatic person would be the opposite of a pragmatic person, as they make decisions based on a strict moral code and aren’t able to think of new ways of doing things.
There are several philosophical schools of thought that have embraced the ideas of pragmatism, including hedonism, utilitarianism, and realism. Many pragmatists are epistemological relativists, though this is a controversial element of their philosophies (see Joseph Margolis and Hilary Putnam for an overview). Formal logic is another common tool used by pragmatists, but some have criticized it for its pretension to ultimate truth as being antithetical to pragmatism. It is also not uncommon to see pragmatists embracing other forms of metaphilosophy, such as empiricism, fallibilism, verificationism, and a Quinean naturalist metaphilosophy. These schools of thought are often referred to as the “neo-pragmatists,” although they differ somewhat from the classical pragmatists that Peirce, James, and Dewey envisioned in their work.