roughminded

Roughminded, or rough-minded, describes a temperament or approach to knowledge that favors practical experience and common sense over formal theory and abstract reasoning. The term emphasizes a blunt, unpolished mode of thinking, contrasting with more refined or bookish forms of thought.

In philosophy and political discourse, roughmindedness is used to describe skeptics of utopian systems who prefer explanations grounded in observable effects and everyday institutions. It is often invoked in debates about realism, pragmatism, and the limits of theoretical schemes when applied to social life.

Typical features include empirical grounding, a distrust of abstruse metaphysics, a preference for straightforward explanations, and an emphasis on tangible outcomes. Roughminded thinking can accept complexity and ambiguity in real-world problems, rather than insisting on tidy, universal theories. It does not reject theory outright but prioritizes practical consequences and lived experience.

Critics argue that roughmindedness can verge into anti-intellectualism or hinder critical reflection on structural factors and long-term implications. Proponents counter that it helps prevent overengineering, ideological rigidity, and the neglect of everyday human concerns.

In cultural criticism, roughmindedness is used to contrast pragmatic realism with idealized or speculative visions, highlighting tensions between what works in practice and what theory promises. Related concepts include common sense, pragmatism, realism, and anti-intellectualism.