A new study of the current state of linguistic pragmatics This textbook provides the first truly multidisciplinary analysis of the current state of linguistic pragmatics, responding to the needs of an academic environment which places increasing value on multidisciplinary studies. Each chapter begins with an introduction to the pragmatic and other theoretical concepts covered, followed by a discussion of the significance of the chapter topic to the book's multidisciplinary theme. Louise Cummings argues that no study of pragmatics is complete without examination of the historical and contemporary influence of neighbouring fields of enquiry, such as philosophy, psychology, artificial intelligence and language pathology. Examination of pragmatics can likewise help these fields to tackle their own specific questions more productively. The book's wide range of topics and the depth of analysis will be of particular interest to students and specialised readers in linguistics, communication studies, speech and language therapy and cognitive science.