Pragmatic communication and Theory of Mind

A foundational assumption in theoretical models of communication is that the derivation of pragmatic meaning involves the calculation of speaker intention and hence relies on a form of Theory of Mind (ToM). Recent theorizing, however, has challenged the conclusion that ToM is required for all types of pragmatic processing. Here, we provide a theoretical synthesis of a wide-ranging but seemingly conflicting set of empirical findings on the role of ToM in pragmatic processing in children and adults, focusing on two key phenomena, reference and implicature. We argue that the state of the art offers no reason to abandon the hypothesis that both adults and children rely on ToM for the computation of pragmatic meanings. We propose that, across these and other pragmatic phenomena, apparent differences in ToM involvement can be attributed to principled and predictable outcomes based on how ToM is applied to the context in hand. We conclude by outlining new ways of studying the contributions of ToM to pragmatic interpretation.This article is part of the theme issue 'At the heart of human communication: new views on the complex relationship between pragmatics and Theory of Mind'.