Irrelevanz

Irrelevanz is the quality of being unrelated or lacking bearing on a matter at hand. The term is used across disciplines to describe information, arguments, or factors that do not influence the conclusion or decision under consideration.

In logic and philosophy, a statement is irrelevant if it does not affect the truth or validity of a conclusion. Recognizing irrelevanz helps avoid unnecessary or distracting premisses in reasoning. In argumentation, irrelevance is related to fallacies such as ignoratio elenchi (red herring) or non sequiturs, where the response does not address the pertinent issue.

In law, relevance is a criterion for the admissibility of evidence; irrelevant evidence is typically excluded because it does not tend to prove or disprove a fact of consequence. In statistics and research, an irrelevant variable does not explain variation in the outcome, and distinguishing relevant from irrelevant factors improves models and interpretation. In information retrieval and media, irrelevance describes results or content that do not meet user goals or queries, guiding filtering and ranking through relevance assessment.

Examples help illustrate the concept: the color of a car may be irrelevant to proving a crime in a particular case, whereas in another context weather or timing could be relevant. See also Relevanz, Ignoratio elenchi, Relevanzkriterium.